In 2022 I was asked to create a new playing uniform for the AVIS Magic netball team. I last produced a design, Mahuika, for the Magic in 2012 which they subsequently adopted for the next ten years. I was however disappointed with the initial process of translating my design to the uniform because I was removed from that part of the process and the design subsequently didn't make sense when reconfigured for different formats and transferred to a red uniform. Magic marketing manager Christine Buckley said of the design however “that it signified a fresh start for the Magic and drew parallels between Mahuika, the embodiment of female power and strength, and the type of team the Magic wanted to become in the upcoming season” The original Mahuika uniform was worn by the Magic team in their premiership victory in the 2012 ANZ Premiership season.

I was happy to be approached to again add to the whakapapa of the original design in 2022 with the proviso that I would be involved with the final use of the design in any situ. Te Ahi-o Mahuika when finally released for the 2023 season is a design that I am particularly proud of as it pays tribute to the traditions of Magic and honours the female form and spirituality of the Waikato Bay of Plenty region. Te Ahi-o Mahuika is inspired by the Māori goddess Mahuika, who is the personification of fire. The yellow flame of the fire curves up the dress, sparks and raises the star, representing the fire of desire, the aspiration and power to reclaim victory. The star being the representation of past Magic success.

The coloured heart is a Magic tradition and is at the centre of this design also. The red represents the womb and the heart of the people, of women, earth mother and the team. The blue waters flow and connect the region, the rivers and ocean. The black exposed through the spaces carry the Māori design meanings, ‘the flow of life’ curving and growing to represent whanau (family) whanaungatanga (relationships) and whakapapa (history).