He Tohu Maumahara ki a Paora Mato

This summer internship was organised by Dr. Te Taka Keegan to be a Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga Named Internship supervised by Dr. Kim Pickering at The University of Waikato. The project was called “He Tohu Maumahara ki a Paora Mato” and involved the creation of a 3D printed Tekoteko with a harakeke based biodegradable filament for a trophy in memory of Paora Mato, a staff member at The University of Waikato who unfortunately passed away last year in June. The design for the tekoteko was taken from a figure carved on Paora’s 21st key, scanned and edited to become a standing figure reminiscent of the tekoteko perched on the gables of a marae. An 80% polylactic acid (PLA) and 20% harakeke fibre composite was made for the filament and used to print the tekoteko, which stands at 18 cm. Post-processing techniques such as sanding and staining the tekoteko were researched and carried out in order to produce an aesthetically pleasing piece. From a Māori perspective, this project poses many questions about tikanga, traditional practices and contemporary art and is a stimulating topic for more discussion.