My entry to 2011 002 Magazine cover competition

This year's cover contest theme was: "Our City". I struggled with trying to come up with an idea for this for a week or so and came up empty handed. Houston, to me is a very large city that has no real consistent 'image'. I can't think of any singular or even small group of things that say "Houston". Then, as I was starting to put up all my materials, after the original deadline had passed, an idea popped into my head- something having to do with mosquitos. We just had a tremendous number of floodwater mosquitos hatch two weeks after a day-long downpour. Then, I found out that the deadline was extended. This is the idea I came up with: a mosquito full of blood on a wall that is being shaded by bougainvillea. I decided to present an image that all Houstonians could relate to regardless of ethnic, racial, or class backgrounds. We all experience the beauty the city has to offer such as nearly year around flowers, and we all must deal with the pesky mosquito. So, I guess my explanation would be: Houston: The good, the bad, and everything in between.