Art and Archive

Pests: A Micro-History Comic – A Creative Queer Interpretation of the History of Mosquitoes at Island View Beach

This is an original comic created in response to a story I uncovered at Island View Beach, while working at the Sidney Museum and Archives. Newspaper articles from the Peninsula Review pieced together a story of fear and misinformation about mosquitoes spreading AIDS. What peaked my interest was the “nudist gays” who went to the same beach the mosquitoes idea spread from. This comic attempts to shed light on their side of the story and reflect on the impact of this narrative on the community.

This comic is now part of the queer history exhibit at the Sidney Museum and Archives and has been shared in zine form at the Sidney Pride Festival. The original historical interpretation can also be seen at the Sidney Museum and will soon be featured here at queerhistoryishere.com

A big thanks to the Sidney Museum for helping me share this work!