Sites of Ritual | Bonnyrigg

Name: Sites of Ritual | Bonnyrigg
Start: 2025-09-20T01:00:00.000Z
End: 2025-09-20T05:00:00.000Z
Location: Bibbys Place

Program

A day of ceremony and conversation, exploring how design and architectural principles support faith and cultural practice.

Three neighbouring sites at Bibbys Place in Bonnyrigg — Phap Bao Pagoda, Vietnamese Community Cultural Centre, and GracePoint Chinese Presbyterian Church — will welcome visitors for a day of ceremony and conversation. This program highlights design as a living expression of culture, passed down through generations, embedded in rituals and shaping how communities gather, remember and belong. It will include tours, talks and performances from community members and local designers. Powerhouse Collection objects will be on display in each space and food will be available.

Program

Phap Bao Pogoda is a Vietnamese Mahayana Buddhist temple led by resident monastics. Phap Bao supports spiritual practice and community life through teaching, meditation and architectural care.

Venerable Pho Huan shares Buddhist design principles applied in shrine layout and Bodhi Tree placement to create alignment and symbolism in ritual space.
Venerable Giac Anh reveals the architectural foundations of stupa design in Phap Bao’s construction that bring Buddhist teachings into the built form through geometry and architectural orientation.

Vietnamese Community Cultural Centre is a community-run space that celebrates Vietnamese culture through performance, language classes and intergenerational arts programs rooted in shared heritage.

Local practitioners Thao Nhi La and Tammy Dang explore cultural identity and intergenerational creative practices through Đông Hồ folk prints, tracing their evolution from carved woodblocks to contemporary graphic design. Vietnamese Community Cultural Centre presents a celebration of Vietnamese heritage and design through sound, costume and movement. Traditional garments áo dài and áo tứ thân are worn by dancers and musicians, with stories shared about their origins and symbolism.

Traditional Vietnamese instrumental performance with narration by Nostalgia Band.
Dance performances by children’s group VietAus Little Stars and ensemble Viet Vũ.
Traditional Cải Lương theatre performance.

GracePoint Chinese Presbyterian Church is home to a multigenerational Chinese-Australian Christian community. The church integrates faith, music and cultural expression in daily life and worship.

Calligrapher Jack Sea hosts a demonstration and workshop exploring the design logic of classical brushstrokes, line weight and character composition.
GracePoint Chinese Presbyterian Church members perform a Biblical Chinese opera demonstrating the connection of their faith and Chinese performing arts heritage.