Frida and Fussel founded this studio. Without knowing.

Who Frida and Fussel were is on the home page. This page is about what came after.

The studio started in 2023 in Berlin from a single question: what would pictures look like that show animals the way their people actually see them? Not cute, not symbolic, but with wardrobe, posture and a preferred grievance.

Founded by Ankarina, who at some point decided that animals weren't given enough to do in images. Now she does it herself. The studio currently runs three lines in parallel: annual calendar editions, postcard sets based on fairy-tale motifs, and free animal portraits that refuse to fit any larger concept.

What sets us apart from the image mainstream

Three things. First: every edition follows a concept, not a search term. Walk past a calendar shelf and you see twelve interchangeable stock photos in twelve variations. We build a narrative across twelve sheets instead, with animals that hold a position.

Second: we use generative image models, but we don't hide it. Every motif is hand-worked after the render — retouched, cropped, colour-tuned and print-prepped. What comes out is no AI quick shot but a finished hybrid image.

Third: no real animals on set, no stress, no studios. References come from our own archive, documentary sources and licensed libraries. Frida and Fussel wouldn't have shown up. And wouldn't have sat still if they had.

How we work

Each edition takes months. Spring for concept and research, early summer for composition, autumn for finishing, late summer for printing to be ready for the following year. Every motif goes through several rounds of correction; every proof is checked against the reference until colour and line are right.

What we don't do

• No online shop on this site. Sales run without advertising via external channels.
• No tracking pixels, no pop-ups, no cookie banner. Nothing to log.
• No photo-upload personalisation.
• No stock pulled from a search index. Every motif has a brief.
• No costume clichés. No cowboy hat on a mouse, because mice rarely cowboy.

"Fussel wouldn't have read this. Frida would have complained she wasn't mentioned."