On Friday 24 June 2022 New Zealand (NZ) celebrated Matariki as a public holiday for the first time.
Matariki is a star cluster known in other parts of the world as Pleiades. In NZ Matariki is known as the Māori New Year as it’s appearance signals the start of the lunar calendar and is a time to reflect on the past year and look forward to the next.
In Tauranga, NZ we have a small extinct volcano at the end of a sandspit (which is now very developed). The mount is called Mauao or The Mount.
Predawn on Matariki a new sculpture was unveiled and we were able to see for the first time the stainless steel parts we had 3D printed incorporated into the sculpture. They have been aged to fit in with the stone. Like Matariki, the sculpture looks back at the past with the use of ancient rock and forward to the future with the use of 3D printed stainless steel. The Pounamu (Jade) on top is for people to touch and represents the life force.
