The coronavirus pandemic has kept us inside since March, but one positive effect is that it has created time for me to work on some projects of my own and to learn some new skills. I’ve spent a good bit of my quarantine time learning to use the open-source 3D software, Blender, and I love it! I know that there are already a lot of fantastic images of this virus out there, but it seemed appropriate to make my own model and illustration of the Covid-19 virion that is responsible for this little interruption in our regularly scheduled life on Earth. Blender’s cloning and instancing tools are well suited to the task of replicating the thousands of detailed parts which make up something like a virus particle. Each model virion in this image contains about 80 spike proteins, 240 membrane and envelope proteins, and 120,000 lipids!
In this render I’m imagining the sun setting on the virus, as we begin to return to the world outside. Although I know we have a way to go yet, some day we will be able to put Covid-19 behind us and get on with our lives. Stay safe!