By Phina Newton
For Krystal Dallinger, the netball court feels like home.
So much so that she made a pact with her mum that they could move to Newcastle from her hometown of Dubbo in regional NSW if she was selected for three representative teams.
She was. And the rest you could say, is history.
A proud Gamilaroi woman Krystal’s talent and flair extends beyond the netball court. She is also an incredibly talented artist.
Her passion for art was truly born after Krystal unfortunately busted her ankle during her time playing netball at Hunter Academy which forced her to take time away from the court.
But there was one shining light from that otherwise rocky period, she met former GIANT Sam Poolman.
After connecting with Poolman, Krystal gifted her a GIANTS Netball hat that she had painted herself and from there a wonderful relationship transpired.
While building on their friendship. Sam also noticed how talented Krystal was with a paint brush, which came at the perfect time given the GIANTS were looking for an artist to design their First Nations Round dress.
“Sam went back to the GIANTS and said: ‘this is our girl’,” Krystal said.
Krystal was asked to design the GIANTS Netball dress for First Nations Round in 2018 and has done so every year since.
Krystal's chance meeting with a netball star changed everything. Her talents then caught the eye of Netball Australia who then asked her to be designer for their 2023 Suncorp Super Netball First Nations Round.
Humbled by the sheer scale of the opportunity, Krystal still struggles to put her emotions into words.
“Going to the First Nations Round in Sydney, it's going to be a GIANTS home game and being the designer of the GIANTS dress as well as the Netball Australia design, I am just completely speechless about how much it's (her artwork) going to be exposed," she said.
"It's just going to be an unbelievable feeling that my artwork is everywhere in the stadium."
And the most heart-warming part is, it will be a huge surprise for her mum.
"Walking into the stadium with my mum is going to be amazing, because she doesn't actually know the extent of what's happening with this design. She knows little bits and pieces, but I've made sure to keep it under wraps, so she's going to be absolutely thrilled to see it," Krystal said.
Being a Gamilaroi woman, it was important for her to include her own community into the artwork.
“As soon as I get an opportunity to make a design, I automatically go out to my community and get in touch with my elders and my family,” Krystal said.
“So, I always get inspiration from my friends and family and from the people who are impacted most.
Krystal's artwork is titled 'Gather as One'. “The three animals in the design are a recognition of the acknowledgment, and it also touches on the elder’s past, present and the ones emerging.
“And I did the kangaroo for the elders emerging and the future of our culture. I did the Emu as I am a Gamilaroi woman, and we are the Emu people. And I did another personal touch being the goanna. So that is the present. And my personal totem is the goanna.”
As much as acknowledging the past is important to Krystal, she wants to recognise the change and the promise of the future too.
“The story behind this year's design is all about incorporating modern and traditional designs, being the bright colours and everything being modern and the more earthy colours being traditional,” she said.
“I wanted to put on a twist that in modern times everyone is welcome and accepted in the netball community and I wanted to incorporate traditions in the recognition of the First Nations Round so the earthy colours in the animal’s representation of the ochre that we used in traditional times.”
Netball continues to be home for Krystal, and for many others. But she wants to ensure that netball will always be a place for indigenous athletes, and although she no longer plays, she is paving the way through her artwork.
“The handprint in the middle is a very significant thing that we see in cave paintings, I wanted to incorporate the handprint as a traditional custom, but I made it so that it was my handprint to add that personal touch onto it.
“It is like a I was here, this is our house, this is our home.”
The match day ball for First Nations Round, designed by Krystal. Artwork © Krystal Dallinger
Proud Gamilaroi Woman
‘Gather As One’ 2023
