From Ebola to Coronavirus — A Simple Practice of Sticker-Photo Portraits for Health Care Workers

The scene has become a familiar one at COVID-19 testing centers: health care workers clad in head-to-toe personal protective equipment with eyes peeking out behind an N95 mask and goggles. Expressions and smiles are hidden behind a protective layer.

The image becomes even more stark when thinking of those alone, in isolation.

“The stories of people dying alone with no one in their room except an occasional masked health care worker struck the psyche of the country,” said L.A.-based artist Mary Beth Heffernan. “That has been the turning point in the U.S. for realizing that there's a need to make a human connection.”