bison designer brian tunks

A little while back I featured products from Bison in real living magazine, and shortly after I saw them on display in Object Gallery, the "shop" for the Australian Craft & Design Centre - a sign that these products are not just pretty, but verge on being artworks! The ceramics are handcrafted from Australian stoneware clay, and are designed to last a lifetime. But it is, perhaps, the colour palette that won my heart. Interestingly, Brian Tunks, the man behind the business, got his passion for design while working on ancient Greco-Roman excavations in the Middle East.

Which five words best describe you? Curious, determined, optimistic, open, loyal.
What was your first job and what path have you taken since then? Mowing lawns as a 15-year-old. I then went to school in Sweden... started my undergraduate Arts degree at UNE then studied for a MLitt in Classics and Ancient History at ANU. After finishing this I set up Bison and considered a Phd... 13 years later I'm still thinking about it!
What’s your proudest achievement? Can I have two?

1. Setting up my first store in Canberra nearly 5 years ago.
2. Winning 2 of 3 coin toss competitions at the Forrest Primary Trivia Night last week!
What’s been your best decision? Not to compromise on quality... ever!
Who inspires you? My partner of 21 years, my family, and my Belgian Shepherds (Inky and Claude).
What are you passionate about? Helping to minimise my carbon footprint (I have small feet!)
What’s the best lesson you’ve learnt? That words mean little unless backed by action.
Which person, living or dead, would you most like to meet? Richard Avedon
What dream do you still want to fulfil? A rural property in the Bangalow area... acres of lush garden and rain!!! (A rarity in Canberra.)
What are you reading? Albert Camus, The Plague.