New Zealand Senior Visits FGY Art Gallery CHCH to Realise Her Artistic Dream
On 3rd February, senior citizen Lorelei Burdett visited the Fo Guang Yuan (FGY) Art Gallery Christchurch She was welcomed by Public Relations Staff Ryan Wang FGY Gallery Staff Juin Mei. The moment Lorelei saw some high quality reusable cloth bags with custom paintings by Keith Morant, she became very excited at how fashionable they were!
Lorelei worked previously as a radio and television program planner and enjoys creative art pursuits in her post retirement life. Her mother is an artist too, and she said that her love for art probably came from her. Most of Lorelei’s creations are in the form of oil paintings, with flowers, trees and other natural features as her subjects of focus. So far, she has created about 50 pieces, one of which has been made into a reusable shopping bag design, and though it may not be as high a standard as that of the art gallery bags, she hopes she can improve on the quality in the future.
The creative portfolio of Lorelei has expanded to include notebook covers, and audio books which allow the visually impaired to gain new experiences from art. The strong artistic atmosphere of the art gallery really makes her feel at home, the space and design imparting a welcoming feel, sparking an idea in her to hold a personal art exhibition herself, something she never thought about doing until now.
Towards the end of the tour, Lorelei visited the main shrine and was entranced by the solemn atmosphere. The flowers offer by the Buddha reminded her of the flowers in her garden back home, and she would like to bring some with her next time as an offering. Lorelei hopes that she will have the chance to hold a personal exhibition at the FGY art gallery some day, just as another challenge and experience to liven up her life.