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Besides being a rat lover and a writer, I’m also an artist. I used to focus on hyper-realistic portraits in graphite, but over the last decade I’ve preferred to do an eccentric mixture of realism and illustration, with a touch of whimsical storytelling. Think pop surrealism meets children’s literature.
I still love graphite, but I’ve been working on mastering colored pencil as well. In the last several years I’ve also become obsessed with needle-felting, which is essentially sculpting in wool (I only use cruelty-free and ethical wool). What does this have to do with rats you may ask?
Well, I’m sure it’s not a huge surprise that my art often centers around rats in some way. Not always, as I do have a lot of non-rat characters that I draw and needle-felt, too, but rats will always be my muse. They are the reason I moved away from realism and drawing people and into a world of illustration inspired by my own rats. Plus, you can’t spell “art” without R-A-T!
I enjoy finding and collecting work (when I can afford it) from other rat-centric artists as well. So in this article, I’m going to share some of my favorite accounts featuring truly wonderful rat imagery. What I love about this collection of artists is how they each have their own unique voice and stylized version of what a rat looks like.
Inspired By Rats
Ilinca Mitchell (@ratladyart) first caught my attention with her ethereal sketches of sleeping rats, drawn in graphite or red-colored pencil. They perfectly capture the sweetness and adorable characteristics that rats possess. I could tell immediately by Ilinca’s semi-realistic style that she knew rats from personal experience and was an owner. With the long back feet and adorable sleeping positions shown in these simple, stylized drawings, I instantly visualized my own rats.
Besides being proficient at graphite, colored pencil, and marker, Ilinca is also a master at illustration and digital art. She’s also a prolific enamel pin maker and sells them and a plethora of other items in her Etsy shop, RatLadyArt. I had to buy two different ones for my own pin collection and will buy more in the future. Seriously, there are so many designs to choose from!
Ilinca’s rats, Oscar and Henry, have passed away, but her love of rodents has not. She may draw many other cute animals in various styles, but it looks like rats will always be her main theme.
Another artist whose love of rats became an instant inspiration is Anna Lark (@thebeanbaguette). Once an owner and a volunteer for Rattie Ratz rescue in California, Anna still finds rats dominating her artwork. She uses these misunderstood animals as her main subject matter, capturing them in the most delightfully sweet way. If only everyone could see rats in the way Anna’s utterly charming imagery depicts! Her watercolor-like style also gives the art a dreamy, fantasy feeling that leaves me wanting to live in the world she’s created.
Besides doing digital illustrations and traditional watercolor pencils and Copic marker, Anna is also a needle felter. The wool rats fall in line completely with Anna’s signature style and look exactly like the 2D versions. Anytime one pops up in my feed, I know exactly who made it without even looking at the account name.
Anna also encourages other artists to draw rats. Every October she hosts a drawing challenge called Rattober. Using her list of rat-themed word prompts, one for each day, you can participate by posting and sharing your rendition to the hashtag #rattober. Even though the month is close to over, make sure to check it out and challenge your own creativity. And check out her Etsy shop, The Bean Baguette, as well.
Drusilla Kehl (@drusillakehl) is the artist behind The Illustrated Rat and has been a long-time rat owner and rescuer. She’s been in the rat community for decades and has been delighting owners with her realistic-styled line work and watercolors for just as long or longer. She’s known for doing commissions of people’s pets, rats included of course, and putting rats into her fan art.
She was one of the first rat artists I came upon, back when I was first getting started with rats. Drusilla eventually became a long-time contributor to my former magazine “It’s a Rat World,” especially during the holidays. She has a large inventory of humorous holiday rat art that rings in each season perfectly.
Marvel At This Clay Art
Lise Doyle-Goss (@starbrux) isn’t currently active online, but I have to share her work regardless. While she’s not creating new pieces at this time, there are plenty of adorable clay sculptures on her account for you to “Awwww!” over. Including some commissions she did for me years ago, one of which she has pinned to the top of her Instagram account.
Her style of rats is very simple, stylized, and endearing. All her pieces are great, but the ones with clothing and props are extra special. It’s these features that make some of her figures one-of-a-kind and hilariously charming.
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For example, one of the sculptures she did for me was inspired by three of my past rats: Sterling, Delphiniums Blue, and Echo. They are all “working” on my magazine and are interacting with things that were part of my creative process, even down to a cup of tea that’s sitting off to the side. Lise also included seven miniature replicas of “It’s a Rat’s World” issues.
What’s really impressive is that Sterling is flipping through an issue that he was the cover model for in real life. If you get out a magnifying glass, you can even read the article he’s looking at! Or, how about Echo, who is sitting at a mini laptop and the screen shows one of my issues in-progress. It’s an issue that Echo was really on the cover of, where she was sitting at her own rat-sized MacBook. How meta is that? Lastly, there’s Delphiniums, who in real life was an absolute ham in front of a camera, and is holding an itty-bitty iPhone and taking a selfie. You can then see that selfie on the iPhone screen!
My jaw literally dropped when I received this masterpiece. I will cherish it forever.
I only recently stumbled upon Varvàra Fern’s account (@varvara_fern_art) and her clay work, so I know nothing about her or where her inspiration stems from. If she has never had pet rats, then I’m even more impressed by her ability to capture their spirit.
Varvàra is a sculptor who specializes in realism. While her main focus doesn’t seem to be rats specifically, it looks like she has been commissioned to sculpt them often for rat owners. The thing I find most amusing is that many of them have been shaped into the pancake position (lying completely flattened out like a pancake) that we owners are so familiar with. Her latest pancake rat doubles as an urn and was painted to look like her customer’s rat that passed away. What an amazing way to remember a beloved rattie friend!
Varvàra has lots of other rat sculptures in various positions, each one extremely impressive. I’m an instant fan!
Be Wowed By A Book Illustrator
Nadya Bonten-Slenders (@nadyart) is the queen of whimsical animal art; but, of course, it’s her rats who have me smitten. I’ve been a fan of her sketched, minimalist style for a long time and love how something so undetailed can convey so much.
I’m not the only one who feels this way either, because Nadya has racked up over 90 thousand followers on Instagram and numerous fans through her work with Painted Words illustrating children’s books. Nadya also has a self-published book called “Oliver Finds a Friend,” which is a wordless book about a rat named Oliver. Definitely check out her work. It’s sure to put a smile on your face.
Don’t Miss These Other Standout Rat Artists
Since there are just too many fabulous rat artists to go into detail about, here’s a quick list of others I follow:
@kholeane: Cartoony, watercolor art of animals, rats being one of the main focuses.
@duduki_art: Creepy cute doll creatures, some of which are of rats. I absolutely want one of them for myself!
@doriangrantkemp: Mostly digital art that highlights spooky and Halloween themes. Dorian has owned rats and uses their likeness often in his work. Two of my favorites by him that I own are his steampunk plague rat and his logo, which is a really cool graphic design of a rat skull. He sent a copy of it to me after I encouraged him to sell prints of it.
@maggiemice: Mice rather than rats, but simply the cutest felted mice you’ve ever seen! Maggie also uses them to create stop-motion videos.
@sculptures.by.nevermor: Eve Turner, another rat owner, has a way with clay. Not only does she sculpt rats in a hilariously cartoony way (very similar to Lise Doyle-Goss), but she also creates truly stunningly realistic versions of them as well. They are a must see!
For even more, peruse the hashtag #ratart. Just keep in mind that due to the nature of social media, not everything is going to be child appropriate or everyone’s cup of tea. But you’re bound to find something you love.
