Future Fibres Wananga
This workshop on the 22nd of May at Geoff Wilson Gallery explored the cutting-edge of future fibres and e-textiles, including thermo-, hydro-, and photo-chromic pigments and threads, Arduino sensors, fibre optics, and biomaterials.
Delivered by Professor Frances Joseph, the workshop introduced participants to the leading edge of materials and textiles. It will allow time to tutu and make objects for display during the ARG Lab 24.
Contact us if this type of workshop is of interest.
Workshop Hosts: Lorraine King and Te Hemo Ata Henare
Lorraine King (Ngāti Kahu ki whangaroa, Te Whakatohea) and Te Hemo Ata Henare (Ngāti Kahu, Ngāti Hine, Te Whakatohea) partnered with the Awhi Incubator in various ways providing guidance and support and acting as conduits to the broader community as well as receiving knowledge and skills in return in the area of future fibres. A great win/win.Both are experienced kaiako on the Maunga Kura Toi programme in Te Tai Tokerau, and are highly regarded Ngā Toi (Māori Arts) creative practitioners who have exhibited nationally and internationally
We were privileged to have them exhibit work created using skills and knowledge from our first future fibres workshop in Rawene, in the Future Fibres Zone of our BIOS lab, in 2023.
About Frances Joseph
Frances is a designer, maker, and researcher at Huri Te Ao/The School of Future Environments at Auckland University of Technology and director of Intra-Action Initiatives. She is a leading expert in new material practices and sustainability which includes bio-materials, local production systems and material ecologies. She works with colleagues and postgraduate students to develop and deliver workshops to engage communities in making processes that support creativity, economic opportunity and localised solutions.
Frances has been a critical partner with the incubator, providing some workshops (in Rawene and during BIOS) and mentoring to several participants. She also provided a talk for our ARG symposium

About ARG Lab 24 & Awhi Incubator
This experience was part of the Alternative Reality Gardening Lab – a creative innovation event within the capacity-building Awhi Incubator Project. ARG Lab 24 showcased research conducted by participants and collaborators of the Awhi Incubator during 2023/2024.
Following a successful publication and symposium in 2023, ARG Lab 24 is a transdisciplinary collection of exhibitions, events, performances, workshops, and talks exploring diverse perspectives on place. It occurred in various locations across Te Tai Tokerau|Northland from May 17th to the 25th.
Underpinning the lab are themes of resilience, diversity, sustainability, and an expanded understanding of the concept of ‘place”.
Places today are formed from multiple intelligences, materialities, and lifeforms and are intersected by a rich array of alternative realities and parallel worlds. Flora, fauna, signals, and code entangle, and what is considered real, true, alive, and beautiful is negotiated. The lab explores emerging new types of gardens. What is being cultivated (internally, creatively, physically, spiritually)? What is thriving, and what needs protection? What new lifeforms and materials are emerging, and how do they intersect with what exists now?
ARG Lab 24 is a nexus for scholarly debate and creative exploration, highlighting themes of resilience and sustainability. It interrogates the intersection of emerging technologies with natural and social ecosystems, exploring how digital narratives and artistic practices can inform and transform our understanding of intelligence, being, space and place.
ARG Lab 24: TV

Thanks to the Ministry of Culture and Heritage | Manatū Taonga for funding the Awhi Incubator Project through their Innovation Fund.



























