Week 12

Rationale: My concept illustrates the physical and metaphorical concept of how mauri helps mana flows from an object to a person. Mana being the power or essence that exists in all living things regardless of birth and mauri being the energy that binds and animates all things in the physical world. Without mauri, mana cannot flow between an object and a person. The digital technology I have chosen as part of this concept is a transparent haptic interface glass that serves as both a protective case and a way for visitors to contribute to the mana of the object. Haptic interfaces ass texture to an object usually through vibrations beneath the screen. The sculpture would otherwise feel flat because of the physical limitations of a digital screen. The rich sensation of touch is then integrated to the digital experience. When the visitor's hand is left for certain period of time while feeling the intricate details of the object, the shell-like structure begins to emit a blue light that represents the mana that is flowing from the visitor into the object. This therefore increases its life force as the mana provided by the past, present and potential future visitors of the exhibit would build up over time. The exhibit includes brief information on the Maori terminology used and more information can be accessed  by using the RFID Te Papa ring from the first assignment.