Anna Althea Hills was born in Ohio and studied art in Chicago and New York. During the first decade of the 20th century Hills travelled round Europe.

From 1909 to 1911 she studied in St Ives, and in Lamorna with John Noble BARLOW. During 1911 her companions there were her sister Nellie, a china decorator, and the Australian artist Rose LOWCAY, a fellow student of Barlow.

After returning to the USA, she moved to Los Angeles in 1912, settling in Laguna Beach the following year.

A landscape painter, Hills became well known for her distinctive palette knife technique. Developing a career as a teacher and lecturer, she became an ardent promoter of arts education for children. She was a founder member of the Laguna Beach Art Association, which came into being in 1918. Thanks to her drive and determination, a fundraising effort bore fruit in 1929 with the creation of a permanent exhibiting gallery for the Laguna Beach Art Association.