Mount Isa’s Cungelella Art sisters are taking Australia’s fashion industry by storm

Family is everything to Glenda McCulloch and her sisters. When we last spoke to the women behind Cungelella Art, they told us they were about to launch a fashion label called Myrrdah. And launch it they did! Named after their great-grandmother who was born on the Sandover River, an ephemeral waterway in the Northern Territory, Myrrdah’s first collection sold out in just 24 hours.

Now Glenda, 35, Dale Bruce, 36, Cheryl Perez, 33, and Jaunita Doyle, 39, have collaborated with Infamous Swim for a range of swimwear that you can see on these pages, photographed on family and friends at their favourite swimming place, Spring Creek Rock Hole.

Here, we asked Glenda about the sisters’ journey into the world of fashion and she shares a few of her favourite things!

What does a typical day look like for you?

First things first: we drop the kids at school. All 13 of our primary-aged kids attend the same school, so we meet there and then figure out our plans for the day, which often includes grabbing a coffee at our local coffee van.

How did your creative career start? What prompted it all?

It was never intended to be a career.

I just started by picking up a brush one day and sharing my art on Instagram. At that time there were only a handful of Aboriginal artists sharing and selling art on this sort of platform, and we also noticed that there was no place in Mount Isa where you could buy or access Aboriginal art, so we approached a local coffee shop and started selling art in there.

How did the swimwear collab happen?

We had already collaborated with Amber Wilkinson, the former owner of Kind is Cool; she introduced us to Gemma Crowe from Infamous Swim in Melbourne. After several online meetings and planning sessions, we finalised the artwork, story, colours. When we received the samples we absolutely loved them!

Favourite place to swim and why?

To be honest, we’re not fans of the beach. While it’s visually appealing, we hate the humidity and the constant wind blowing — you can tell we’re from the desert! On the other hand, we absolutely love our seasonal waterholes, which are amazing, even if they’re only filled for a few months of the year.

Describe your style in three words.

Comfort is number one, although we do LOVE to dress up for a special occasion; for instance, we will soon be attending a Luke Combs concert and the outfits we plan to wear are definitely not comfortable!

Tell us about some of your favourite labels. What do you like about them?

For leather sandals we love Sol Sana. We have all splurged on expensive Louis Vuitton leather bags; we all love Country Road for T-shirts and coats; and we love any label with quality linen.

Do you swap clothes with your sisters?

We sure do! We’re not all exactly the same size, but that means we have a good range to pick and choose from, which is very convenient.

How has your style changed over the years?

It has changed a lot. We are embarrassed when we look at older photos, and we would not be caught dead in the outfits we wear for lounging about the house. I think having kids has changed our fashion choices.

Tell us about one item in your beauty cupboard that you love.

We live in a region with very dry heat, so we really need our Olay moisturiser. We always carry lip balm or pawpaw ointment in our bags.

How do you feel when you see people wearing your designs?

Oh, it’s very exciting to see people wearing our artwork and designs — it makes us feel proud. It was always a dream to design clothing, and now we’ve actually done it. It’s a surreal feeling.

What has been your experience so far in the fashion industry?

It has been very good. We have met so many people who have offered advice. They give us their phone numbers and say, “If you need anything at all, call me.” People have been so very supportive.

Fashion Week was an eye opener. We’re a whole world away from Sydney, so going into Fashion Week was crazy for us, but we will be back there soon, we just know it.

And what’s next for you and all your talented sisters?

We have been working on some amazing things behind the scenes. We’re excited for 2025!

Keep up with the sisters’ latest ventures on their website, their Cungelella Art Instagram page, or their Myrrdah Instagram page. 

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To hear more extraordinary stories about women living in rural and regional Australia, listen to our podcast Life on the Land on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and all major podcast platforms.