Five Minutes with Illustrator Anna Parini

We love illustrator Anna Parini's smart, thought provoking graphic works and visual metaphors, which have been featured in worldwide magazines and publications including The New Yorker, Vogue, and Apple, among others. Here Anna tells us about her cultural life and the inspiration behind her first SPHERE cover.

Five Minutes with Illustrator Anna Parini 

For my first SPHERE cover the story I wanted to tell is… about women in craft, haute cuisine and elegance, a concept that would combine food and fashion in the same image.

I create my works by… simplifying and reducing the elements of the image as much as possible.

My process for selecting the specific colours this work (and all my works) is always inspired by… the general mood and atmosphere I want to convey, in this case it was a fresh and light summer feeling.

What I most love to express through my work is… simplicity.

I’m from Milan, but I love living in Barcelona for its … weather!

My earliest creative influences were… Quentin Blake’s illustrations for Roald Dahl books.

The highlight of my career so far has to be…the cover I did for The New Yorker.

If you are visiting Barcelona and want a different experience… I recommend Montjuic Cemetery. It has very morbid atmosphere, which brings its own charm: here you can experience 150 years of art history, and the cemetery is a unique place of silence in the city.

To do my job, I can’t do without… listening to podcasts and interviews.

The last book I downloaded/read… Hildegarda by Anne Lise Marstrand-Jørgensen.

The next thing on my mind is… what will I have for lunch today?

AnnaParini.com