Extraordinary Everyday: The esky
5/13/202612 min
From cricket sidelines to camping trips, the esky is an essential tool of getting out and about, making sure cold drinks are always within reach. It’s so familiar it feels stitched into Australian life. But where did the esky actually come from? And is it really an Australian design, or something we simply made our own?
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First 90 secondsSpeaker 00:00
[electronic music] ABC Listen: podcasts, radio, news, music, and more [upbeat music] Human beings are remarkable creatures.
Anthony Burke· Host0:13
Over time, we've invented a multitude of tools and knick-knacks that help us live our lives, and they're so efficient and good at what they do, we don't even notice them anymore, but each object has a tale of human ingenuity to tell. Welcome to Extraordinary Everyday. I'm Anthony Burke. [upbeat music] You can take it to the cricket, on a picnic, or load it up for a camping holiday. This versatile little container has transformed the Australian outdoors, making sure a cold drink is never far away. It's the esky, a quintessentially Australian object that feels deeply embedded in our cultural DNA. But where did it come from? And is it truly an Australian design? Ian Wong is a senior lecturer in the Monash University Faculty of Arts, Design, and Architecture, and founder of the Ian Wong Collection. Good afternoon, Ian.
Ian Wong· Guest1:10
Hi, Anthony. I'm very pleased to be here.
Anthony Burke· Host1:13
So, so is the esky an actual Australian design?
Ian Wong· Guest1:16
The idea of a cooler is not so much Australian, but certainly the esky as we know it, we call it an esky, evolved in 1952 from a company called Malley's in Sydney, and Malley's started their business, uh, Francis Malley started it