Aidan Higgins

Aidan Higgins (b. 2002) is an artist from Doylestown, PA whose work centers on comic-illustration–style scenes of towns and gathering places, populated by imagined characters, tributes to his animation heroes, and painted figures from beloved films, television shows, and Norse mythology. Among his recurring characters are Max Cooper and Sally Gibson, inspired by himself and his older sister.

Higgins’ art often explores themes of friendship and connection. “It takes a lot of time to make my art,” he says. “I’ll think about stuff from the past, and that’s hard sometimes. Then I draw my characters and scan them into the computer so they look more real. I want to style my characters the right way.”

He is currently working on “Evil Toys,” a new graphic novel that reimagines an Island of Misfit Toys–type world as a challenge for Max and Sally to navigate. “Sally uses the Toy Maker 2000 to make the toys human. But trouble comes quickly, and they’ll have to figure out what to do.”

Music is an essential part of his process. “Music is like fuel to my brain and my heart. It helps me create the characters and make them the very best they can be.”

Higgins is deeply committed to his craft and unafraid to explore difficult emotions. “I have a lot going on in my brain all the time. See, I have autism, and that’s why my brain looks like this.” He holds up a sketch: a figure with closed eyes and an open head, from which characters spill, smiling, dancing, cheering, crying, shocked, scared, and angry, alongside years such as 2011, 2001, 1999, and 1992, with the words “good,” “mean,” “nice,” and “bad” orbiting around. Higgins’ work reminds us that process can be both cathartic and celebratory, and that wearing one’s heart on one’s sleeve should be a source of pride, not shame.