The restorative power of illustration
- Drawing has been a path to healing for Higinia
- Her illustrations are compelling statements that raise social awareness
- Raised in Bilbao amid ideological conflict, her work carries an imprint of nonconformity
The vivid use of colour and soft, rounded lines in Higinia Garay's illustrations create eloquent statements in support of a pronounced feminist perspective. Her comics invite reflection and social awareness, engaging with themes of human rights and gender inequality. After receiving her postgraduate degree in publication design from the European Institute of Design in Madrid, Higinia worked as a graphic designer for nearly a decade before transitioning to her illustration practice and establishing her own studio in 2013. “Drawing has always been my real passion,” she says. While digital drawing expanded Higinia's exploration of colour and analogue techniques, such as sketching, watercolour and collage have remained an integral part of her creative process.
INTERVIEW
My parents were both creatives, my father an architect and my mother a fashion designer. They instilled in me a love for art and an inherent creativity. My grandmothers also played a central role as guardians and examples of strong, modern women who defied their own struggles.
Digital tools allow me to work with a wide array of very vivid, saturated colours. Pink is prevalent in all of my work and has become a powerful element of expression. Geometrical forms, on the other hand, help me organise the chaos that surrounds me and understand the universe I inhabit.
I created a graphic novel for NGO Mundubat, with hopes of giving a voice to victims of a severe abortion law in El Salvador. Abortion in El Salvador is legally classified as aggravated homicide, whether women chose to end their pregnancy voluntarily or through miscarriage. Reluctant to intrude in their intimate stories, I concluded I should tell my own first.
My autobiographical comic novel came to be after my experience in El Salvador. I decided to open up about my own wounds, before inquiring into others' emotional vulnerabilities. It was a five-year healing journey across various residencies to explore my personal evolution amid challenging relationships with adults, their dynamics and addictions.
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