Jeanine Clarkin (Ngāti Hako, Ngāti Pāoa, Ngāti Ranginui, Ngāti Raukawa) continues to be a leading voice and long standing influencer in Māori fashion, with her work seen from Paeroa to Paris. She recently had a retrospective show - Te Aho Tapu Hou at Waikato Museum, curated by Maree Mills, and was one of the exhibiting artists in Paraikete Threads at Pātaka Art + Museum, where her designs sat alongside other talented ringatoi including Mataaho Collective. Jeanine’s fashion blends activism, whakapapa, and sustainability turning everyday materials like wool blankets into garments full of history and meaning. Whether she’s hosting a “Dress Up and Dance” event or sharing her story through fashion shows, exhibitions and workshops, her kaupapa reaches across generations. Her work reminds us that Māori identity isn’t just worn, it’s lived, celebrated, and constantly evolving.

Stitching Whakapapa into the Future of Fashion

I’ve been designing clothes for 30 years - long enough to gain the reputation of being the pioneer of Māori fashion and to know that fashion can do more than just dress a person. I’ve seen fashion shift whakaaro, spark conversations, and even start movements. The funny thing is, I never set out to be a fashion designer. I didn’t even know that was a career option - It wasn’t really a thing at that time. I actually wanted to be a hairdresser so I could wear awesome clothes and look cool while doing it!

But over time, fashion became my way of telling our stories, showing our strength, and bringing our style into everyday life. It’s my way of amplifying Māori identity - infiltrating spaces where we’ve been invisible and keeping an eye on what’s happening at the edges. I call this ‘peripheral vision’ because sometimes the most exciting things start out quietly, just outside the spotlight.

Ngā toi Māori, our unique artistic and creative expressions, are more than just art. They’re tools for transformation. They are the means that help us remember who we are, and they help us shape where we’re going. In my practice, I try to honour that. Whether it’s through upcycled wool blankets, streetwear inspired by traditional garments, or collaborations with other Māori artists, everything I make is stitched with whakapapa, purpose, and pride.

I like to think of my work as a kind of cultural infiltration. Not in a sneaky way but in a deliberate, proud Māori way. My designs are loud and bold, and I love knowing that they’re worn in spaces that never expected us and scream, “We’re here. We belong. And we’ve got something powerful to offer.”  Whether it’s a gallery, a runway, at a club, the supermarket or a boardroom: Our toi Māori deserves to be seen, heard, respected, and celebrated.

Ngā toi Māori will absolutely shape the future, I have seen the influence of my work and others, spread and ignite creativity. Our creative practices are grounded in values the world is crying out for: Connection, manaakitanga, kaitiakitanga, care, balance, and whakapapa. When I create, I’m not just making something beautiful. I’m weaving in our tūpuna, our whenua, our wai, our pūrākau, and our moemoeā. That kind of depth can’t be replicated by fast fashion or mass production.

I often talk about ‘peripheral vision’ or, what's happening just outside the spotlight. That’s where I like to look. I like checking out what others are up to. What’s happening in our communities? What are my mates and whānau trying out? What’s going on at the marae or within my iwi.  What stories are being told, retold and untold? What’s bubbling up at the edges? That’s where the future is being built. And ngā toi Māori helps us tune into that space and bring it forward.

When I design, I draw from the wharenui, the whakairo, the tukutuku, the kōwhaiwhai. These are more than just patterns, they’re knowledge systems. They carry the stories of ngā atua, te taiao, our tūpuna, my whānau, hapū, and iwi. I bring all of that into my garments. I’ve reimagined traditional pieces like the maro and rapaki into streetwear - not to modernise them, but to keep their mana alive in everyday life.

Fashion is my way of doing decolonisation work. It’s about reclaiming space, telling our stories our way, and giving our people designs and kakahu that feels like home. I grew up hearing the saying: “You are what you wear.” So why not wear something that reflects your whakapapa, your values, your pride?

The future we’re shaping is bold, creative, and unapologetically Māori. Mauriora!

About Te Manawa

Te Manawa is an initiative ‘for Māori artists, by Māori artists’, grounded in whakapapa, organised by tikanga, and shaped by collective voice. 

This is a movement to amplify, activate, and advocate for Māori arts and artists in Tāmaki Makaurau - guided by the pulse of Te Manawa, Pumanawa, Whatumanawa. These three life forces are essential, shaping how we uphold Rangatiratanga, Manaakitanga, and Auahatanga in everything we do.