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DYLAN MOONEY
FEATURED ARTIST INTERVIEW
Dylan Mooney is a Yuwi man from Mackay, Queensland, Torres Strait Islander from Darnley Island and Australian-born South Sea Islander. His practice includes digital illustration, drawing, printmaking and street art inspired by history, culture, family and community stories. Jonathon Saunders had a chance to chat with Dylan about his art practise and career.
INTERVIEW BY JONATHON SAUNDERS
Your artwork has a very strong focus on identity, activism and representation. What message do you hope to convey in your artwork with your Indigenous and non- Indigenous audiences?
With most of my works, I think the message that I try to get across is about our resilience as blackfellas. You know, our survival. We are still here. Coming from such traumatic paths but we have overcome those hurdles and obstacles. We’ve been able to create paths for ourselves and build our own future so that the next generations can continue that work and that fight that we have done, and also acknowledging our elders and our ancestors who have laid that foundation for us to keep doing that.
Apart from being Indigenous, you’re also a Torres Strait and South Sea Islander man, and those two groups are very under-represented in the Australian art scene compared to Aboriginals. Do you ever feel like there’s, a pressure that comes to representing your mob?
I don’t think of myself as a spokesperson. I kind of like to think of it as a person that is able to amplify the voices of others and help support other Torres Strait and South Islander people. Because of my platform I’m able to do those things.
Would you like to see more of that representation in the art world as well, when it comes to Torres Strait and South Sea Islanders.
Yes, I would definitely love to. I always try to put that into my work. And just to let people know that we are also Torres Strait Islanders. Torres Strait Islanders are also First Nations peoples, and also acknowledging the histories of South Islander peoples and the work that we are doing today.
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BLAK POWER - 50 Years of First Nations Supehreroes in Australian Art exhibition at Northern Cetre for Contemporary Art (2023) art catalogue featured the cover artwork "Resist" by Dylan Mooney. CATALOGUE AVAILABLE HERE
What was the inspiration for your art and style?
Growing up I wanted a lot of anime TV shows and movies and a lot of superhero movies as well. DC and Marvel, Batman, Superman, the Avengers - that’s what I grew up with. But I never got to see people of color or Indigenous people being represented as the main characters. So I guess with the work that I’ve done, it’s putting us as black fellas in the spotlight and making us as heroes.
Have you actually ever thought about taking those characters and making a comic book or animation featuring those characters?
I’ve always wanted to do that, but I’m just not good at writing stories. I think that was the main issue with me starting a comic book. I’ve always wanted to go into animation as well. I think that will be one of my next projects, creating a comic book and finding someone to help the story.
Would you focus on the writing or the art side of things?
I’d focus more on the artwork side. You know, that being my strength. I’m not really good with words, having a little bit of input as well on where I want the direction of the story to code.
Who’s your favorite Indigenous or Torres Strait Islander or South Islander superhero?
Oh, I think my favorite is the one I’ve created. It’s a superhero called Kaigani, he’s a queer Indigenous superhero and he wears an awesome skin cloak that, when he puts it on, he transforms, and it gives him his costume. And his costume is like a neon rainbow. So that’s one of my very favorite characters and superheroes that I’ve created - almost like putting my identity into the superhero - but also other people’s stories into the superhero as well that they can resonate with.
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KAIGANI (2021) by Dylan Mooney
what programs do you use to create your art?
I use Microsoft Surface Studio 2. So it’s like a big computer, but it looks like an iPad, and you can tilt it down when it’s standing. I have a stylus (digital pen), and I just draw straight up to the screen. The program I use is called Adobe Fresco. I also use Adobe Photoshop as well, and I just switch between the between both programs. If I need to resize the works or add in text, I’ll take it from Fresco and put it into Photoshop.
I know that you would sometimes do the preliminary sketches on paper. Is that still the case or is it all digital now?
Yeah, I still do the sketches on paper, and then I’ll scan that onto my printer and onto the computer and just tidy up the outlines on the computer. And then I start to build the color and all that.
Would your career as an artist be different if you didn’t have access to those digital tools?
Yeah! A lot of people don’t know that. You know, I’m a drawer. When I first started, I was drawing on paper and then I moved on to printmaking. The digital space is still new to me and I’ve only been doing it for about four or five years now, like still learning and everything. If I hadn’t moved to digital illustrations I would still be doing just traditional drawing on paper!
Do you move back and forth between digital and the physical side of things, depending on the project?
Yeah, depending on the project or the artwork that I want to create, I like the digital working on the computer, it’s very seamless and I can do it at a fast pace as well.
"This Is Our Whirled" campaign video.
What was it like to create artwork for Ben and Jerry’s ‘This Is Our WHIRLED’ campaign? Did they give you creative freedom to create the artwork?
Yeah, they did give me creative freedom. I also worked with the community as well back in the Torres Strait just to make sure that they were happy that the message that was being told properly and people would be able to clearly see what is in the artwork. So there was a lot of back and forth and consultation with the community back home, which is a great thing, having that community input and that truth-telling and a good way of giving back as well. It was a great experience and very meaningful as well. This was a topic that’s really close to my heart.
Do you think that when talking about those topics and bringing attention to them through art gets more people to notice and actually take action?
Definitely. I think art is a tool that is very powerful.It helps people and also makes people change perceptions. It’s just a different way to tell stories, whereas people are really used to seeing it through media and writing as well as text. So I feel like art just has the power to change people’s thoughts and minds and parts in ways that other genres could do.
What are you working on at the moment?
I’m represented by a gallery in Sydney, the N.Smith Gallery and I’m working on my solo show that I have in January with them. Every year I have a solo show with the gallery, and that’s pretty much how I make my money. But I’ve slowed down a bit with my work, because I’ve stepped into a curator role. I’m currently the Assistant Curator at Art Space Mackay. So that’s what I’ve been doing.
Do you find that stepping out of your comfort zone, and curating art instead of creating it gives you a new insight when it comes to exhibitions?
Yeah, it’s a different experience. As an artist, you’re used to just taking your work to the gallery, and just saying, “Okay, here. Take it whatever you want”, and then walking out the door. Whereas, being an assistant curator, you’re seeing it from the other side. That means a lot of emails and admin, and then also having to install the work, making sure that each piece works well with each other.
Do you have any words of encouragement for young up and coming artists?
What I always say to the younger emerging artists or people who want to get into art - especially mob - is: find something that you like. Find stories that you want to tell. Always remember where you come from because I think that’s a very big foundation for the work that you can create, and just stick with it. It’s a lot of hard work, but it pays off in the end. A lot of great things happened.
BELOW: "New Beginnings (2023), art by Dylan Mooney
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