By Lily Plass

Copyright abc

An inflatable art piece that made a grand entrance at the Sydney Olympics in 2000 and then vanished has now reappeared in an art exhibition in rural NSW.

Two-time Archibald finalist and creator of iconic surf brand Mambo, Reg Mombassa’s skeleton fish motif was part of the parade during the closing ceremony of the Sydney Olympics but for the next 23 years, the whereabouts of the inflatable were unknown.

That is, until artist and director of Coonabarabran’s Space Art Gallery Allison Reynolds made a rare discovery at an online auction two years ago.

Ms Reynolds had an inkling who the artist behind the fish with its supersized tongue and distinctive lips was and obtained the art piece for $250 — including shipping.

She said the fish was alongside big sale signs, inflatable stick figures and other advertising devices.

“Whereas this is quite obviously a piece of art,” Ms Reynolds said.

After contacting Reg Mombassa’s studio, Ms Reynolds confirmed that the fish was indeed the work of the artist.

He designed 12 six-metre inflatables, two 20-metre helium-filled dirigibles, three stages and 16 inflatable crowd balls for the Sydney Olympics.

From the arena to the country

Ms Reynolds thought the skeleton fish motif would make a nice addition to her art gallery.

“I thought it was going to look amazing above the roof line because we have the old shop frontage with a corrugated iron verandah poking out,” Ms Reynolds said.

“I had visitors come through the other day, on the way to Townsville and they said they had to drop in to [see] Reg Mombassa art piece and what was going on.”

The exhibition includes other mentions of the skeleton fish motif, dating back to 1990.

Chris O’Doherty, whose artistic name is Reg Mombassa, believes after the Olympics, the inflatables were either sold off or stored in the Powerhouse, while others were used for festivals and events.

“I was just pleased that someone was using one of the inflatables from the Olympics,” Mombassa said.

The sculpture has been weather-resistant so far, but to make the art piece more stable, Ms Reynolds had it filled with expanding foam.

“This is thick vinyl because obviously during the Olympics, you don’t want it blowing away,” Ms Reynolds said.

Artwork brings visitors

The fish has caught the eye of many locals in town.

“I thought it was quite amazing and unique. It was lovely that we could get something so different here,” local Sue Forbes said.

“I’ve been away for a few days and then came back. And there it was. It’s just a lovely expression of imagination. Just exciting, frivolous, life-asserting,” local Laura Hartley said.

Laura Hartley, who settled in Coonabarabran from Scotland in the 1970s, created her own fish-themed art through weaving for the exhibition.

“I understand the fascination of the ways things are constructed in the natural world,” Ms Hartley said.

Bones are a red thread through Mombassa’s work.

“I do the bones of people, of cars, of trucks, of guns. I do the bone structure of variety [of] things that don’t actually have bone structure,” he said.

Ms Reynold’s hope for the fish is that it does not go back to a box.