Toby Twiss is one of 14 artists, makers and designers exhibiting in How to make a home, a show exploring the small universe of home and the material politics of the objects and adornment we live with over time. We asked Toby four quick questions about their work in the exhibition and what makes a home, read his responses below.

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Objectspace: Can you briefly describe the material and making of your works in How to make a home?

Toby Twiss: The works are wheel-thrown, made from low-fired terracotta, with terra sigillata as the final surface treatment. The forms are dictated by the speakers I have at hand and what they need to function efficiently.

OS: Can you share some of your thinking behind the works?

TT: I came to the idea for these works from a desire to create a sound system for my home. I learned that spherical or ovoid enclosures are better for bouncing sound, and horns could increase sound. These forms could easily be thrown on a pottery wheel. For a long time, I have been influenced by the geometric quality of Greek and Roman vessels and felt that the simple, pragmatic playfulness of these forms would be both appropriate and honest.

OS: How do you feel your work connects to domestic spaces and/or the way we adorn and dress them?

TT: Pottery is inherently domestic. As a vessel, it holds, protects, and offers up substances. A traditional stereo is a plastic box that is replaced at will, its main function being to make sound and recede into the background when not in use. I feel that it is important for objects to function on another level when not in use, whether sculpturally or conceptually. The ceramic speaker enclosures hold and offer up sound.

OS: How to make a home posits that what makes a home is the persistence of ‘things’ that inspire us to feel like we belong. Can you tell us about an object that has made, or does make, your home a home?

TT: For me, the fireplace, or the oven – once one and the same – plays a central role. They bring people together for warmth, nourishment, and psychological well-being. As long as I have the ability to cook, eat, and stay warm, that is home.

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More about Toby Twiss

Toby Twiss is a sculptor based in Tāmaki Makaurau, Auckland. He trained as an art founder in the 1980s and established a bronze-casting foundry in Auckland. In the early 1990s, he designed and created steel and bronze furniture, participating in several exhibitions, including Artiture. Twiss completed an MFA at Elam and worked as a commission-based sculptor and teacher, coordinating the Otago Diploma of Ceramic Arts at ASP for the last 14 years. Twiss is currently pursuing a PhD at AUT, exploring the interface between old and new technologies.