Mulga the Artist, also known as Joel Moore, has always loved a blank page. He often found himself filling up the margins of his school books during class with kooky characters and funky patterns. Once school finished, though, Joel traded those margins for sticky notes as he started his career in financial planning. But he continued to find himself creating new, imaginative worlds when he should’ve been working. In 2014, Joel made the pivot to a full-time career as Mulga the Artist and took his designs out into the world: painting murals, designing T-shirts and collaborating with iconic brands. Now celebrating a decade of being a full-time artist, Joel reflects on his creative journey, what pushed him to pursue his passion and what helped him to thrive. 

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] A series of images of Mulga the Artist and his studio, which has a palm tree mural on the wall and is filled with paint markers and items, including a cup and beer cans, featuring his illustrations. 

Going Full-Time as an Artist

“I was getting pretty frustrated in my office job. I didn’t have a passion for it, I wasn’t moving forward, I wasn't even making good money. I remember thinking, ‘I don’t want to look back in 10 years and be doing the same role or the same job.’ So I started to think about doing art a bit more seriously. 

“My whole plan to get out of my day job was to put my art on T-shirts and sell them at markets. So I started going to [Sydney’s] Bondi markets every Sunday selling T-shirts while I was still in my day job. I did that for about two years and then looked at how much money I was making by going to the markets. In 2014, once I started making the same as my day job income, I went down to four days a week and then about three months later, I just quit completely.”

Mulga the Artist sitting at his desk in his bright studio that is decorated with his murals on the walls and furniture. He’s using a paint marker to colour in one of his sketches. 

Making Money From Your Art

“There’s a million ways to do it but for me, I never tried to make money by hoping people would buy the original art. I was all about printing designs on good quality T-shirts. It was an easier way to monetise my art. 

“No-one cares about your art as much as you do, so you’ve got to give the market what it wants. It’s really hard trying to get money out of people, so you’ve got to be doing a good thing and fulfilling the need in the market to be able to make a living. Just be practical and back yourself.”

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A series of images of Mulga the Artist and a variety of his murals and artworks, including a surfboard, guitar and shirt featuring his illustrations.

Finding Creative Inspiration

“I like to start off with a surf in the morning; it’s always a good way to start the day, but when I get into my workspace and my desk, it’s where the creative juices kinda get switched on.

“I painted murals on all four walls [of my studio] because they were just white walls before, which was very uninspiring. I also painted my desk an aqua colour with palm trees and pink clouds. I bought a nice chair with a footrest that I extend out so when I’m sketching, I can put my feet up. I’ve got a ring light setup for some extra white light for when it’s too dark. 

“I also have lots of little knickknacks. I collaborated with Slurpee, so I have some Slurpee cups. I bought some cool little things from my recent trip to Japan and [I have] some artworks around as well. Just nice little memorabilia.

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A close-up shot of an artwork in progress. Mulga the Artist is using a yellow Posca pen to colour in a part of his sketch.

Is It Better to Draw on a Tablet or Paper?

“Looking back on some projects I’ve done, I remember they were very difficult because I wasn’t using a tablet. I’d use Poscas on paper, scan it and then the client would want to change colours. It was just a lot harder. Now using a tablet, it’s just a lot easier to design and change things.

“I also like the fact that when I create on paper and then scan it, that image can be used on anything, and I end up with an original artwork, which is also worth something. I recently did a collaboration with a brand and at the end I actually sold the hard copy of the artwork to them. Rather than selling a print of a digital work, they bought an original artwork, so I kind of doubled my money.”

A mural painted by Mulga the Artist on a concrete barrier in Peryman Square in Cronulla, NSW. The mural is of an ice-cream cone with a face and a seagull wearing sunglasses. 

What to Know When Painting a Mural

“I remember before I painted my first mural at Bondi Beach, I didn’t sleep the night before. It was all the unknowns that made it scary. Before I started painting murals, I guess I thought, ‘How do you do that? It’s so hard, blah, blah, blah’, but it’s not that different to painting on a canvas with brushes. If you can paint something with acrylic paint on a canvas, then you can paint a mural. It’s just a bit bigger, and it takes a bit longer.

“Murals aren’t as detailed as smaller artworks because you have to think about how long things are gonna take. If you have too much detail in murals, it’s not time or cost efficient, especially if you need to get it done in a certain amount of time. For example, one large character can make more of an impact than three smaller characters on a wall.

“For anyone wanting to try it, check out some YouTube videos. There are probably thousands of videos of people telling you how to paint murals and you’re going to learn so much from people who have intentionally made videos. After that I would say, just do it; just find a wall and do it. Whether it’s someone you know who has a wall in their garage or even in your bedroom, just do it and practise in your own space. You can even take a photo [of what you want to paint] and then mock up your design on the wall using Adobe Photoshop Express.”

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Getting out of a Creative Rut

“Sometimes when I’m in a rut I look at a Dropbox folder with hundreds of my artworks and I’m like, ‘Oh yeah, that was cool. I drew that artwork in a way that’s kind of different. I could do something kind of similar to that again.’ Sometimes, that’s one of the best ways for me to come up with new ideas and some fresh inspiration.

“Another thing I like to do when I paint murals is sketch the design on A3 paper. Then, maybe a few years later, I have a whole pile of these sketches that I colour in. I even like doing it on the weekends; it’s kind of relaxing. I’ll just get my Poscas out and start colouring and finishing the artwork. So it’s a nice original artwork that I can get framed and list for sale on my website. Colouring in existing sketches is just enjoyable and I get a good rush of endorphins when I finish. I don’t have to think about it. Just enjoy the creation process.”

A series of images of Mulga the Artist and a variety of his murals and artworks.

Advice for Artists Starting Out

“You’ve got to put in the time. Experiment a lot and have fun with it. It’s one of the hardest things trying to find your style and figure out what you’re going to do. Are you going to paint? Are you going to draw? What is it going to look like? I remember going through all that and it is really hard. 

“Just try and improve. If you’re doing an artwork, once you’re finished, look at it afterwards and think about what you’ve done wrong, what was good and how you can improve for the next time. That’s how you improve; you kind of look back – you don’t just do it and then move on.

“You only live once and you don’t want to die with regret. Sometimes you’ve just got to go for that dream and just see how it works out. It’s better going for it and failing than just never trying, I think.”

An assortment of art supplies shown on various brightly coloured backgrounds. Products include things like sketchbooks, acrylic paint, graphite pencils and paint markers.

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