Kala “Sunburnt Country” – Tenor – Artist Chantelle Mulladad
| Article number: | KA-DS-CM-SC-T |
| Availability: | Out of stock |
Mahogany Top Back and Sides
Tenor
Desert Story Lines Logo Bag
‘Sunburnt County’ Painting by Arrente Artist Chantelle Mulladad.
A royalty on the sale of this ukulele is forwarded to the artist.
The Story behind Desert Storylines.
The idea for creating a range of Ukuleles painted with Aboriginal Art goes back to 2008 when we (Jacaranda Music) were distributing Martin Guitars. Chris Martin, CEO of Martin Guitars, on one of his frequent visits to Australia, expressed an admiration for Aboriginal Art and asked me if I could organize to have a Martin Guitar painted. I rang Daran Rumball, owner of Rock City Music in Alice Springs who directed me to Keringke Arts. Keringke Arts (https://keringkearts.com.au/) is located at Santa Teresa, a remote Aboriginal community 100 Ks southeast of Alice Springs. They said no problem, so I sent them a Martin dreadnought and, because we had recently become Kala distributors, I sent two Kala Tenor Ukes as well. We got the instruments back to Adelaide – I sent the Martin to the Martin factory in the USA and one of the Kala Tenors to Kala in Northern California.
Some time later, Mike Upton, CEO of Kala asked me if we could produce some Kala Ukuleles with genuine Aboriginal Art. So, this is how Desert Storylines was born. The project was derailed by Covid and it took some time for the Kala Factory to work out how to decorate the top of a ukulele. But now, in October 2025, we are finally there – at the end of this month we receive the first shipment.
Some points to remember:
Whilst these are Kala Ukuleles, the main feature is the artwork and the highly talented ladies who have consented to the use of their art.
We are committed to highlighting the three artists, Margaret Bloomfield, Evelyn Young and Chantelle Mulladad rather than the ukuleles themselves.
We have signed contracts with Keringke Arts on behalf of each artist and will be paying a 6% Royalty on the sale of each ukulele as will Kala in the USA who will start selling them in December.
Below is one of the KA-T’s I sent to Keringke Arts quite a few years ago. The intricacy of the hand painted artwork is breathtaking. The artist was Josette Young, the mother of Evelyn Young whose artwork appears on the concert model.