Christine Blasey Ford is on the cover of this week’s Time magazine. But it’s not a photograph of Ford; it’s an illustration of the words and phrases from her testimony arranged into a striking image of her taking an oath.
Last week, Ford detailed her sexual assault allegation against Brett Kavanaugh in a televised Senate Judiciary Committee hearing that drew millions of viewers.
San Francisco-based artist John Mavroudis illustrated the cover. He drew each letter and phrase by hand. He told Time the process was like a jigsaw puzzle with an “infinite number of possibilities.”
“The memory quotes would be attached to her forehead area, and the quotes about wanting to help I placed on her hand. The hand could be seen as welcoming, but also deflecting,” Mavroudis told Time.
Phrases on her forehead include: “I’m terrified,” “agonized daily” and “seared into my memory.” On her hand, Mavroudis included “traumatic experience,” “personal attacks and invasion of privacy” and “constant harassment and death threats.”
“It’s a fascinating process to watch the face take shape, while hoping that you’ve captured the essence,” he said.
Time’s covers have depicted the Trump administration searingly, cataloging the chaos that has ensnared it. For example, it has released three related covers illustrating Trump drowning in the Oval Office.