Ibis, wombat or blue heeler? Former Bluey designer steps up in 2032 mascot quest

The Crisafulli government may have made good on its promise to deliver an Olympics plan for Brisbane 2032, and work has (apparently) begun on delivering venues, services, technology and infrastructure.

Animator, art director and visual development artist Catriona Drummond has offered to design the Brisbane 2032 Olympics mascots.

But, seven years out, one question remains stubbornly unanswered: What is happening with Brisbane’s Olympic mascot?

Despite what an April Fool’s gag gone viral might have you believe, it’s not Ian the Ibis.

“We’re a few years off revealing the mascot for the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games,” a spokesperson for Brisbane 2032 told this masthead.

“But there’s already plenty of suggestions being sent through to the Organising Committee. We’ve heard everything from Bluey to the ‘Bin Chicken’.

“It’s great there’s already so much interest and discussion, and we’re looking forward to revealing the final outcome when the time is right.”

Animator and art director Catriona Drummond is tired of waiting. Having designed many of the original backgrounds for Bluey, including the Heeler house, she has put forward her case on Instagram.

“Let me design the 2032 Olympic mascots,” Drummond aka @goodsniff_ says in her video.

“I want the Olympic mascot to be something we can actually be proud of, something that’s authentic to who we are and leaves no one behind...

“As far as I know, I’m one of the few people experienced in leading big design teams in showcasing Brisbane to the world.”

Drummond was Bluey’s original lead designer but quit the show after its first season.

“If you draw one background on Bluey, you’ve kind of drawn them all, and I had quite literally drawn every background on Bluey, more or less, at that point,” she said.

“I think ultimately that was the right decision, even though it was, you know, the opportunity of a lifetime.”

Catriona Drummond’s design for Bluey’s house and neighbourhood.Credit: Ludo Studio/BBC

Drummond said she in fact teamed up with her former colleagues at Ludo Studio to petition the Palaszczuk government back in 2022 for a chance to design the mascot.

She said it was unlikely that Bluey herself could be the Olympic mascot due to rights issues with the BBC and Disney.

“If we can’t get Bluey as the mascot, why not the next best thing, which would be the people who designed Bluey?” she said.

Ludo Studio was approached for comment.

Drummond said that designing Olympic mascots was a risky enterprise.

“Trying to represent everything and everyone, you end up representing no one,” she said.

The much-criticised Wenlock and Mandeville, mascots of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, were an example of what could go wrong.

“Behold the one-eyed compromise monster,” jeered the Toronto Globe and Mail at the time, comparing the mascots to the results of “a drunken one-night stand between a Teletubby and a Dalek”.

“I’m sure [the Brisbane mascot] should have some kind of a sense of humour about it,” Drummond said.

“I think it should represent our amazing wildlife in some shape or form. And beyond that, it’s just a matter of opening it up to the community.”

Eye on the prize ... London 2012 mascots Wenlock and Mandeville.Credit: Reuters

The Brisbane 2032 spokesperson would not say whether the design would be chosen through a public competition as was Borobi, the koala mascot of the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.

Back in 2022, former premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said that the mascot would be chosen by public vote, while former tourism minister Stirling Hinchliffe hoped it would be an ibis.

Palm cockatoos, koalas, dugongs and “Fatso” the wombat, a joke mascot first proposed by comedians Roy and HG for the Sydney 2000 Olympics, have also featured in the discussion.

After 24 hours Drummond’s post had 1300 likes and plenty of supportive comments.

“If I was the CEO of Olympics you’d have the job yesterday”; “You would be perfect for this”; and “Olympics! Hire this woman now!” were some of the responses.

A Queenslander currently based in Melbourne, Drummond said that her Instagram post was aimed less at the Organising Committee and more at creative agencies.

“I think if I could pair up with an advertising agency that I could trust to do a good job, that would probably be the best scenario in all of this,” she said.

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