Anna Higgie

Anna Higgie was born in Australia and trained at Sydney’s National Art School. Having studied Illustration in London, she now lives and works in Bristol.

She combines traditional and digital methods to create her illustrations, which regularly feature in British Vogue.

For Spring 24, Anna created a contemporary still life featuring ingredients from the fragrance. Look out for rhubarb, ginger, and Ffern favourite bergamot.

How would you describe your work?

I’m an illustrator and artist but my practice right now is mainly focussed on digital illustration and painting. I love certain colours and colour combinations - bright and popping and sometimes a bit surreal and unexpected, and I am obsessed with detail and texture. I am allergic to vectors and anything that looks very ‘perfect’ and digital. I love anything organic, wonky, hand made.

First thoughts when Ffern approached you about responding to a fragrance?

Was instantly inspired as I love the brand so much! And it just made sense as I have been doing these still life paintings recently so it just seemed like such a natural fit to create a still life combining all of the different notes contained within the perfume. I honestly can’t wait to get my hands on a bottle and take a big whiff.

How did you approach the painting?

I approach all my still lifes the same way - I do all my research online, gathering loads of images of all the plants I’ll need, as well as any other details like vases and the little figures dotted around on the table (these are often based on Staffordshire figurines which are a bit of an obsession of mine). Then I work on a digital collage in Procreate, and once I’m happy with that I just start drawing! I use a pretty limited palette - I choose a background colour from my palette first and then go from there.

What inspired your attraction to still life? How do you balance the rich history behind 16th century still life concepts with the more modern, kitsch staffordshire figures?

Honestly I don’t have a great answer to this question other than that I think as artists we are drawn to certain things and the best thing to do is not overthink it and just allow what inspires you to flow through you. Fuel is fuel, and if you get that feeling of inspiration, don’t question it, just start making! I think that the process of making art should be less in the head and more in the body and in the heart, the gut.

You use both digital techniques and traditional materials - why combine media?

I love real life painting and drawing and they will always be a part of my practice - but I absolutely love the infinity of possibilities that digital allows. There really are no restrictions on what you can draw, and how much flexibility digital allows in terms of being able to make changes and different variations… On the other hand I do love the restrictions that using traditional materials places upon you.

Can you describe your favourite scent?

My baby’s head. Coffee. Freshly cut grass. A really good glass of wine after a long day. All the classics basically.

Where else do you find your inspiration?

Everywhere really. Apart from in Airbnbs (I’m on holiday in Devon right now staying in one) which seem always to be decorated with the most pathologically awful artwork known to man.

You frequently feature ingredients (e.g tea, paprika, mezcal etc) in your art. What attracted you to draw these?

Well the paprikas were because my family live in Hungary (they’re not Hungarian they just live there - long story) so I was inspired by all the beautiful tins at the markets there. The tea tins - I’m just obsessed with old tins! There are SO many of them and so many of them are just so beautiful. I am also very inspired by the domestic and the mundane details of home life, especially since becoming a mother. The mezcal was a bit of a random one - again, just an old bit of packaging that caught my eye.

What are you working on next?

Several book covers, always lots of editorial - and I’ve just finished a huge packaging project which I’m very excited to share but won’t come out until the end of the year.

What is the best advice you could pass on?

Draw every day, pay close attention to what brings you joy and follow it. Don’t be too precious, just play! Oh - and inspiration comes from MAKING, not thinking.

Photography by Aloha Bonser-Shaw