Avis’ work in the first half of the 20th century prefigured much that was to happen in subsequent New Zealand art and design, including the area of Pakeha Māori motif modernism.
Higgs produced work for more than 80 years, starting at the age of 10. Her textiles and paintings have been exhibited all over the country. Her works are in private collections and in institutions such as Te Papa, which holds Deserted Farmhouse, a watercolour that won the National Bank Art Award in 1964.
Though art school-trained, Higgs became a textile designer quite by chance, in her early 20s while convalescing in Sydney after contracting a serious illness during the war. Avis Higgs designs were loved because they translated into patterned cloth the exuberance of 1940s life across the Tasman. Higgs took inspiration from the local environment and nearby locations such as Bondi Beach.
Avis earned a reputation as one of Australasia's most innovative textile designers of her era. In 1948 Higgs returned to New Zealand and once again drew inspiration from her local environment creating designs based on native plants, flowers, and taonga held at the National Museum. She later produced work based on Maori motifs and New Zealand nature themes.
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