Maureen Lander made 'Wai o te Maram'a for the major exhibition of Māori weaving that toured the United States and Aotearoa New Zealand in the mid 2000s, 'Toi Māori: The Eternal Thread – Te Aho Mutunga Kore'. Combining the natural fibres of harakeke and muka with nylon and fluorescent paint, Lander braided muka strands to form the triangular shape of a maro (apron), allowing the rolled leaf ends to hang like the pōkinikini (tags) found on early rāpaki (waist mats). Lander often looks to taonga in museum collections to learn from customary forms, rethinking how we might make these with the materials available to us today and reinforcing a culture of constant innovation. Recalling the genesis of 'Wai o te Marama', Lander said:

“During my years in Hokianga the sight of the full moon rising over the Wai o te Marama valley was a recurring vision, seen from the porch of my bach in Ōmāpere. The track from the floor of the valley up into the kauri forest was a favourite daytime walk of mine. Often when I paused for rest alongside the beautiful waterfall halfway up, I would imagine how the water might look lit by the moon, like its name.”

(Maureen Lander Aho Marama Strings of Light, 12 August 2023 – 14 July 2024)