Like everyone else worldwide, 2020 was a time of turmoil for me.
People had different experiences, but we all shared one common emotion—a constant, lingering fear that loomed in the back of our minds. As the pandemic unfolded, I watched as some people rebelled against wearing masks, some wore them incorrectly, some resisted vaccines,
and some jobs refused to close, putting countless people at risk.

I worked for a good part of 2020, feeling afraid—not just for myself, but for my family and the elders I love. Doom felt ever-present. This is how my plague doctor character came to life.

Toward the end of that year, I sketched a simple design of a plague doctor alongside the phrase “STILL HERE.” It was one of the most common phrases I heard—every time I checked in with friends, family, or colleagues, they’d respond with, “You know… I’m still here.”
This project became my way of channeling that sense of survival, resilience, and the strange humor we found in simply enduring.