We interviewed the great Reg Mombassa! We asked him about the inspiration behind his magnificent artworks seen on our new Heritage Loud Shirt range. Reg Mombassa has been working with Mambo since 1986. So he's kinda the goat around here... Get to know what inspires him to create such iconic pieces.
“Aussie Jesus”
Does Aussie Jesus seem familiar? Well, you may have seen the character on some of Mombassa's other artworks. Mombassa likes to rotate the character through different settings and scenarios.
He said the backstory of the name “Aussie Jesus” came from when he was watching a TV news story. The news story was about a cult leader who lived in the south coast of Australia, who gave himself the nickname of “Aussie Jesus”. Mombassa said he found it ‘ridiculous but funny”.
The other elements in the artwork like the sunken skull appearing out of a body of water and the factory churning smoke, aims at giving the piece a slightly apocalyptic landscape, Mombassa states. He also states that there is little significance about the fact the “Aussie Jesus” is rushing along the artwork.
The “Aussie Jesus” character has 3 eyes. Mombassa says it is a reference to the ‘mystical third eye, that supposedly allows you to see behind or beyond the mundane reality that we generally perceive”.
Mombassa has always been interested in religion and its “ridiculous aspects”. “Aussie Jesus”, although religious, has a more relaxed and sceptical attitude.
This amazing piece only took Reg Mombassa a few days! Including his preparatory drawings and the final artwork. Now that's talent!
“Science Bones”
Mombassa says his inspiration behind this art piece, was the finding and excavation of prehistoric animal bones. He said he finds the process “absurd”.
The inspiration for the name “Science Bones” literally came from palaeontology being the scientific study of old bones. The piece is set in the present; however, it is assumed the bones are very prehistoric and from the “distant past”.
The skeleton in the artwork at first glance just looks like the bones of a prehistoric animal. But Mombassa explains how it represents an “imaginary ancient prime mover and a trailer which would have transported the household appliances”.
This piece also only took Mombassa a few days to complete.
Love these pieces? Well you're in the right place! Shop our new Heritage Loud Shirt range with Reg Mombassa now. This range also introduces a larger size availability with S-3XL.