Seeing Buddhism through the Eyes of Art

‘Wonders of Embroidery – Yao Hong Ying Embroidery Exhibition’ has been on show at Fo Guang Yuan Art Gallery South Island for over three months, and during this time, has attracted countless visitors, tourists and locals of Christchurch. With the exhibition becoming more and more popular in South Island, the reputation of both Fo Guang Shan South Island and Fo Guang Tea House is also on the rise.

On the morning of 27th May, Ms. Bev Smith led a group of 20 from Broomfield Walking Group to the exhibition at Fo Guang Yuan Art Gallery and was personally given a tour by Assistant Curator, Ms. See Shen Lee. Ms. Smith said that the idea of bringing her friends from Broomfield Walking Group first emerged when she saw an article regarding the exhibition in Christchurch Mail.

For everyone in the Broomfield Walking Group, this was the first time that they have visited Fo Guang Shan South Island and the place has established a good first impression upon the group. They expressed their appreciation to Ms. Lee for the guided tour and said that at their next visit, they will definitely be bringing their friends and family with them.

Apart from the Broomfield Walking Group making a group visit to Fo Guang Yuan Art Gallery South Island, many other groups have visited including the Christchurch Tai Chi Group, Tai Group. Eager to see for themselves the exhibition that everyone has been talking about, Ms. Jean Whalley and eight other embroidery enthusiasts from Tai Group booked for a guided tour of the exhibition.

A friend of Ms. Whalley’s again and again recommended that she come and see this exhibition and this gave Ms. Whalley the idea and motivation to organize a group trip to Fo Guang Yuan Art Gallery South Island. After viewing the exhibition, the party moved to Fo Guang Tea House where they enjoyed some delicious vegetarian lunch and shared their experiences of this visit and the exhibition.

At 2pm that afternoon, Assistant Curator Ms. See Shen Lee welcomed 11 members from the Riccarton Inner Wheel Club. Mrs. Beverly Jeffery, who organized this trip for other members of the Riccarton Inner Wheel Club, said that her friend described Ms. Yao Hong Ying’s work as perfection and that you will want to come back again and again. This prompted Mrs. Jeffrey to invite her friends from the Riccarton Inner Wheel Club so that they can share the experience together.

Mrs. Beverly and the group all found this exhibition very eye opening and felt that the tour guides did a good job in making the explanations interesting and added colour to the works of art. The group said that next time they will be bringing their husbands’ group, Riccarton Race Course Sunday Market Rotary Club, to see this amazing exhibition.

Six members of the Christchurch Order of the Eastern Star, after finding out about the exhibition, booked for a guided tour with Ms. Lee on the same afternoon also. Ms. Mabel Boyd said that the group keeps in touch through organizing weekly events and recreational activities.

The group listened intently and gave their highest compliments as Ms. Lee introduced the artist, Ms. Yao Hong Ying, and each of her masterpieces. Each member also commented that, with an exhibition of such high standards, the reputation of Fo Guang Shan South Island will definitely be on the rise.

Through this series of tour guiding, Assistant Curator Ms. Lee said that to successfully promote an art exhibition in Christchurch requires help in many aspects, which makes words of mouth and newspaper articles all the more important. During the last two months of the exhibition, the exhibition has finally made an impression in people’s hearts which have led to the increasing number of visitors to the gallery each day and need for more tour guides.

Through the guided tours, the visitors often comment on the architectural design of the temple and shows interest in wanting to find out more about weekly Dharma Services and Buddhism. Being able to help the local community become more interested and subsequently learning more about the temple and Buddhism is something that Ms. Lee feels honoured to have done. Through art, cultures and communities are being brought closer together and the barrier lowered in attempt to create a harmonious environment.