Mambo is an Australian company created by the musician Dare Jennings in 1984. The brand is famous for its designs, which have been created by an infinity bunch of artists such as Richard Allan or the musician and painter Reg Mombassa, only to name a few from the total of 250 artists who have collaborated with the brand.
Its designs were endowed with a big protest personality, anti-mainstream, humor and a strong attitude. It all started with graphic designs on t-shirts, and ended up producing all kinds of products and merchandising, a path followed these days by brands like Supreme.
In 2000, Mambo had the opportunity of designing Australia’s identity and uniform for the Olympic Games closing ceremony in Sydney. This was a new challenge to achieve by the brand and it served to increase their popularity. Nonetheless, it led into losing strength among the young people who used the brand, thus starting Mambo’s decline.
On YouTube, we can find a video where Wayne Golding, a collector, shows a big amount of products from the brand which is impressive. There is also a documentary about the history and a book, both with the same title “Mambo: Art Irritates Life”.
Written by Adrián Lorca
