James and Eva NG

Dr James NG [伍德明] is renowned for his four volumes of Windows on a Chinese Past, considered the ‘Bible’ of Chinese history in New Zealand. James and his wife Eva [黄綺華] are unstintingly generous in sharing their knowledge with other researchers. This has been adding extra workload to their ongoing research. In recent years, James has been working on the Chinese Camp at Lawrence, established in the 1860s. He was the chairperson of the Lawrence Chinese Camp Charitable Trust for many years. In 2017 James and Eva transferred their research materials to the Knox Archives under the Ng Family Trust Collection that is now recognised by UNESCO as of national importance.

In 2015 I photographed James’ volumes, Windows on a Chinese Past inside the tea house of the Dunedin Chinese Garden, Lan Yuan [蘭園] together with some Chinese objects collected by Toitū Otago Settlers Museum. On a cold and rainy morning in June 2018, I posed James in front of the Victorian-style Poon Fah Joss House at the Chinese Camp at Lawrence. The auspicious gold and red couplet ‘Southern Cross watches over the North; Running water faces the East’ [南星拱北  順水朝東] adorned both sides of the entrance door. In the Chinese context it means the New Zealand Chinese, who came from the northern hemisphere, is being watched over by New Zealand while in the southern hemisphere but that they always remember their origins.* 

I have chosen a photograph that has captured the transient and yet enduring moment of the warm sun shining through the cloud, illuminating James and projecting a shadow of the Victorian ornaments on the couplet. He is watched over in New Zealand and he always remembers his home in China, and so do all the Chinese in New Zealand.

* ‘Running water faces East’ refers to China or the eastern direction.

King Tong HO

2018

伍德明与黄绮华

伍德明的四册巨著 Windows on a Chinese Past   显赫闻名，被公认为是纽西兰华人史的「圣经」。他与妻子黄绮华豁达慷慨，经常与其他研究者分享他们的知识，甚至因此而加重了他们的工作量。近年伍德明着力研究发展自一八六零年代在 Lawrence 的 Chinese Camp。他曾任 Lawrence Chinese Camp Charitable Trust 主席多年。二零一七年伍德明和黄绮华把他们的硏究资料、以 Ng Family Trust Collection 名义、移交与 Knox Archives 保存，被联合国教科文组织列为国家重要文献。

二零一五年，我把伍德明的著作 Windows on a Chinese Past，连同收藏于 Toitū Otago Settlers Museum 的中国物品，放在但尼丁中国花园 [兰园] 一起拍照。二零一八年六月的一个寒雨早上，我请伍德明站在 Lawrence Chinese Camp 的维多利亚式 Poon Fah Joss House 前拍照。门两旁挂着金与红色、透着吉庆的对联，写着［南星拱北  顺水朝东］，含意是：来自北半球的华人，在纽西兰得到看护；他们虽身处南半球，然而常怀念故乡*。

我选择的照片，捕捉了那短暂、却又久远的暖暖日光，透过云层，照射在伍德明身上，也将维多利亚式的建筑装饰投影在对联上。记挂著中国故鄕的他，恒常得到了看护; 在纽西兰的华人何尝不是？

*朝东是指面向中国或东方。

何经棠

2018

伍德明與黄綺華

伍德明的四册巨著 Windows on a Chinese Past 顯赫聞名，被公認為是紐西蘭華人史的「聖經」。他與妻子黄綺華豁達慷慨，經常與其他研究者分享他們的知識，甚至因此而加重了他們的工作量。近年伍德明著力研究發展自一八六零年代在 Lawrence 的 Chinese Camp。他曾任 Lawrence Chinese Camp Charitable Trust 主席多年。二零一七年伍德明和黄綺華把他們的硏究資料、以 Ng Family Trust Collection 名義、移交與 Knox Archives 保存，被聯合國教科文組織列為國家重要文獻。

二零一五年，我把伍德明的著作 Windows on a Chinese Past，連同收藏於 Toitū Otago Settlers Museum 的中國物品，放在但尼丁中國花園 [蘭園] 一起拍照。二零一八年六月的一個寒雨早上，我請伍德明站在 Lawrence Chinese Camp 的維多利亞式 Poon Fah Joss House 前拍照。門兩旁掛着金與紅色、透着吉慶的對聯，寫著［南星拱北  順水朝東］，含意是：來自北半球的華人，在紐西蘭得到看䕶；他們雖身處南半球，然而常懷念故鄉*。

我選擇的照片，捕捉了那短暫、卻又久遠的暖暖日光，透過雲層，照射在伍德明身上，也將維多利亞式的建築裝飾投影在對聯上。記掛著中國故鄕的他，恆常得到了看護; 在紐西蘭的華人何嘗不是？

*朝東是指面向中國或東方。

何經棠

2018