Funeral poverty: Invention makes short work of flax for weaving shrouds

Pania Roa and Mark Lander. Photo / Tamara Poi-Ngawhika

When Mark Lander heard about the strains and injuries kaiaranga (weavers) suffered while preparing harakeke for weaving - he wanted to find a solution.

The South Island paper-making engineer-artist has invented a flax-stripping machine and gifted it to a Rotorua charity so it could continue its work addressing funeral poverty.

The charity, Te Atawhai Aroha, is a charitable trust that supports people who are going through death, dying and grieving.

Lander's machine - called the "swamp creature" - was inspired by the injuries he heard about during a 2015 conference in Rotorua.

The conference pulled together many people who worked with harakeke - weavers, rongoa and artists.

The kairaranga (weavers) spoke of the difficulties preparing the harakeke for raranga (weaving), leading to strain and injury on their shoulders.

Lander experimented with the technology of his paper-making machine, the Hollander, to adapt into a flax stripper.

Lander said "swamp creature" was a tool that harakeke is fed into and removed the flesh, leaving behind the muka fibre that was prized in te ao Māori.

Harakeke paper in the frames, drying in the sun at the Village Arts Centre.

Swamp creature was the sixth iteration of his invention and it has been gifted to Pania Roa of Te Atawhai Aroha.

Roa said she planned to use swamp creature to make the large shrouds.

She said many families were suffering due to funeral poverty and with Work and Income grants, about $2600, would only cover a portion of the cost of saying goodbye to a loved one.

"There is a lot of pōhara [poverty-stricken] people - both Pākehā and Māori.

"People can't afford funerals these days. So making shrouds enables our community to be able to cope with the debt of coffins - which are from $1000 to $3000 and a funeral is about $10,000 minimum."

Roa said when people make their own shrouds, they have a connection to it.

"The experience of making a shroud for the loved ones is more meaningful. Whānau can add their aroha and manaakitanga to the making of it," she said.

Lander said his machine had reduced the 48-hour flax preparation usually required for a kopaki, to four hours.

"It's remarkable. She put through 250 leaves in the first few days," Lander said.

"She can now get on with the creative work that she loves doing, which is weaving."

Lander said his harakeke paper complements Roa's raranga - she makes whāriki kopaki (woven mats).

"The difference is, that instead of taking a whole week to recover from sore shoulders, she can happily cater for more people."

Pania Roa with 'swamp creature'. Photo / Tamara Poi-Ngawhika

Lander acknowledged the reverence of harakeke in te ao Māori.

"It's an absolute privilege to share knowledge with Māori. It's so special.

"Harakeke paper is a new use for a traditional Māori medium.

"Harakeke paper is the bridge between the indigenous materials of New Zealand which have been traditionally used by Māori and the more European knowledge of paper-making.

"And the two fit so beautifully together.

"It's like the New Zealand culture, we need to love one another, and care and have that aroha. We all thrive when that happens."

Roa said she was grateful for the generosity that Lander has shown the Rotorua community.

"Mark is leaving these resources as a taonga for us. It's a significant contribution to our community.

"Te Atawhai Aroha will be the kaitiaki of them and we will gift his legacy on to the community of Rotorua.

"Through the mahi he has done, for leaving his legacy with us, he is a 'master weaver' in his own right.

"He has all these pockets of knowledge in his kete and he's graciously sharing that with our community.

"It's rare to find teachers of his calibre, of his patience, of his inspiration and of his passion.

"Those are really important things when it comes to imparting your knowledge to others," Roa said.