Mosquito – Animal Ink

We swat at them, spray them, curse them and retreat indoors when they arrive, yet this tiny insect has shaped human history more than almost any other creature, largely because of diseases such as malaria, dengue fever, Zika virus and West Nile virus. Some dangerous creatures trigger fear immediately because they roar, slither or charge, but the mosquito is different: one of the most deadly creatures to humans doesn’t necessarily frighten us, it annoys us. It buzzes around our ear at 2 am, lands on our arm and leaves an itchy reminder that it was there, before simply disappearing again. Mosquitoes have existed for tens of millions of years, long before humans, which means that for as long as we have been around, these tiny rivals have been around too. Generations of humans have lived, travelled, farmed, built settlements and tried to sleep while mosquitoes carried on doing exactly what mosquitoes do. The technology we use to deal with them has changed enormously, but the mosquito hasn’t needed to change much at all. That persistence, and the extraordinary imbalance between its tiny size and enormous impact, is what fascinates me.

This illustration was originally inspired by the Inktober prompt “Rivals”, and creating it required slowing down and looking far more closely than most people ever would. Through pen and ink, the mosquito transforms from a nuisance into something unexpectedly intricate, with delicate legs, transparent wings, a segmented body and specialised sensory organs. Perhaps this is the only mosquito you would actually want on your wall; it is definitely quieter and considerably less annoying. Drawing creatures by hand often changes the way I see them, because the more time I spend studying something, the harder it becomes to dismiss it as simply good or bad. Even creatures that annoy, frighten or inconvenience us are remarkable examples of nature solving problems, and the mosquito is one of nature’s greatest problem solvers. This hand drawn 20 × 20 cm pen and ink original forms part of my Animal Ink series, exploring strange, overlooked and misunderstood creatures, and this one is available as a 1/1 original for $295 AUD. Once it leaves my sketchbook, there will never be another hand drawn version exactly like it. Perhaps there is something strangely appropriate about putting one of humanity’s oldest and most persistent rivals somewhere it can finally do no harm: on your wall.