Ōtākaro River Furniture RFPW035
- ClientChristchurch City Council
This proposal reimagines the Ōtākaro River Corridor as both a site of remembrance and renewal, weaving together histories of displacement caused by the 2011 earthquakes and the longer legacy of colonisation. By drawing on the knowledge and practices of Te Ao Māori, the design positions the river as the hau (breath or flow) of kai hau kai—reviving its role as a mahinga kai and grounding regeneration in solidarity and shared belonging.
The proposal encompasses a modular furniture suite that echoes the river itself: a solid macrocarpa plinth symbolising its flow, paired with sculpted recycled plastic elements shaped in reference to native species and gothic revival forms lost in the quakes. These components can be arranged to model the river’s contours and host the everyday rituals of meeting, eating, and gathering, transforming the corridor into a living, contemporary mahinga kai that honours both past losses and future possibilities.
