Australian swimwear label Funky Trunks has released its latest collection, including the new Barnamboo print painted by an Indigenous Australian artist.
Keeping with the bright colors and crazy designs we’ve come to expect from swimwear label Funky Trunks, the new Race Pace collection will ensure any guy ready to stand out at practice gets the recognition he probably doesn’t deserve! The Barnamboo print is especially exciting for the Aussie brand as it was painted by an Indigenous artist to depict a Dreamtime story.
Funky Trunks collaborated with Bardi artist Ashley Hunter who grew up and lives in the community of One Arm Point on the Dampier Peninsular, 2,500 kilometres north of Perth in Western Australia. Ashley is passionate about ensuring younger generations learn the stories of his people so their history isn’t lost forever. In Barnamboo which means sting ray in Bardi, Ashley has captured the beautiful blue water of the Bardi land and the animals that its people have lived with and hunted for thousands of years. Barnamboo tells the story of two friends, Lool Lool and Marrgaliny, who lived during the Dreamtime. The story depicts the events surrounding the earth’s creation and explains how life exists as it is today. Below is the story told by Ashley.
The Story of Lool Lool and Marrgaliny
Lool Lool lived by himself in Garramum where he went fishing in the ocean and hunting for food. One day he was sitting under his bali (shelter) and saw a man walking towards him over the hill. The man saw Lool Lool and walked over to him.He said his name was Marrgaliny and asked if he could build his bali nearby. Lool Lool agreed and after Marrgaliny had built his bali they soon became friends. They went hunting together and shared their food and told stories. Lool Lool hadn’t told Marrgaliny that he had two rock pools of turtles, one rock pool had female turtles and the other rock pool had male turtles. One day Marrgaliny asked Lool Lool to go fishing with him but Lool Lool said he would rather stay home. When Marrgaliny had disappeared into the distance Lool Lool went to the rock pool filled with the female turtles and caught one to eat. Marrgaliny came back and saw Lool Lool cooking and cutting up the turtle and asked him where he caught it. Lool Lool showed him and asked Marrgaliny if he wanted to have a taste. Marrgaliny ate a piece and enjoyed it as the meat was tender and had a sweet taste. He asked Lool Lool if he could catch one for him to eat as well. Lool Lool agreed and went to the rock pool and pulled out a male turtle. He cut it up and gave it to Marrgaliny to eat but the meat was tough and not very tasty unlike the female turtle which had been juicy and plenty to eat.
Marrgaliny became angry and returned to his bali and got his spears, boomerang and marrgar (shield). Both men began to fight and it became a vicious battle. Two other men, Boongood and Jungard saw them fighting and joined in. They fought and fought until Boongood tried to run away. As he was running he was hit by a spear in the back and he fell into the ocean. He wriggled and wriggled to get the spear out but it stayed in him and he turned into a black sting ray with white spots and swam away. Then Jungard was fighting with Marrgaliny who threw hot coals from the fire over him. The coals got stuck in Jungard’s body so he also jumped into the ocean to cool down. The coals caused his skin to become rough and spikey and he turned into a white sting ray and swam away.
Lool Lool and Marrgaliny had run out of weapons so Lool Lool hit Marrgaliny on the head with his marrgar. With the marrgar stuck in his head and the boomerang in his side Marrgaliny became dizzy, he stumbled and he fell into the ocean. He sank into the water and as Lool Lool washed his face of blood he saw the hammerhead shark swimming away.
Lool Lool was exhausted and had a boomerang stuck in his side. So he jumped into the ocean where the boomerang turned into a dorsal fin and he turned into a beautiful shark that swam in the water near his old home. Lool Lool would help people if they were ever drowning or had fallen from their boats.
To capture the essence of Barnamboo, Funky Trunks travelled 135 kilometres west of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory to Ormiston Gorge with Olympian and Funky Trunks and Funkita athletes Jayden Hadler and Blair Evans. In the middle of the desert, Ormiston Gorge is a near-permanent waterhole that is supplied by the underground water basin and is seven kilometres long and estimated to be 14 metres deep.
A portion of the proceeds from every purchase of the Barnamboo print will be donated to One Funky World to support organisations that are promoting Indigenous health and sporting initiatives in remote Australian communities. Countless statistics show a significant gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous health, welfare and life expectancy. One Funky World believes that sport plays an important role for young people to improve health and fitness, build confidence, develop social skills and increase learning. By supporting organisations that operate community swimming, sport and general health programs in Indigenous communities, One Funky World hopes to make a tangible difference to the lives of the young participants involved in the programs.
Check out more of the great new Race Pace collection from Funky Trunks below:
Unleash a can of Tarzan in Jungle Jam.
Amp up your speed in Speed Boxer.
Meet our new mate Prickly Pete – don’t get too close.
Showcase the colours of the Aussie outback in Crystal Wave.
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Courtesy: Funkita, a SwimSwam partner
I’m jealous of all my teammates who are wearing Funky Trunks.