about
bison australia

beautiful handcrafted originals

made from durable stoneware

Forty thousand years in the making

Applying colour and decoration to stone is an ancient art. In Southern France and Spain, cave paintings dating back many thousands of years depict extraordinary scenes of mammoth, bear, lion, rhinoceros and bison. While on the other side of the globe, Australian rock art survives today as the world’s longest continuous artistic tradition. It is with this inspiration that Bison was born – still putting colour and decoration on stone some 40,000 years later.

Bison Homewares was founded by principal designer Brian Tunks. After attending school in Scandinavia and Australia, Brian trained in classics, ancient history and archaeology at the Australian National University. It was during his work on ancient Greco-Roman excavations in the Middle East that Brian developed his love for ceramics, both early and modern. Every day he unearthed incredible artefacts – decorative vessels, domestic bowls and pottery shards – all of which spoke of ancient lives and skilled artisans. It quickly became clear that ceramics were one of the most significant and enduring symbols of great civilisations, lasting long after the civilisations that created them had crumbled.

Bison stoneware ceramics are beautiful, handcrafted, and durable. They are produced with modern designs and materials by artisans using experience and knowledge accumulated over the millennia. Where will your Bison be in a thousand years?

Caring for the environment

Bison products are non-disposable and extremely durable. Our aim is that your Bison will last a lifetime. Bison uses recycled packaging materials and we pay a premium for renewable energy to run our kilns and facilities. We also recycle paper and other office consumables. Our ceramics come from the earth and we are committed to environmental sustainability.

Caring for your bison

Genuine Bison ceramics are lead-free and food-safe. They can be used in the microwave and dishwasher.

Bison products are made from fine Australian stoneware clay. However, even stoneware is breakable and will show signs of wear and tear eventually. You can greatly extend the life and beauty of your Bison ceramic product by taking some simple precautions. Exposing ceramics to rapid extreme temperature changes can reduce their life. Gradual warming and cooling is best. If you warm your Bison ceramics in the oven, be careful that a sudden cold shock doesn’t cause them to crack. We do not recommend Bison for baking. Avoid plunging an extremely hot item into icy conditions or vice versa. Avoid putting an extremely hot dish directly onto a cold bench top.

Repeated contact with hard edges might cause marking or chipping. We suggest you avoid striking the edges of ceramic items and try not to let them vibrate against each other in the dishwasher. Cracks and unglazed services can provide a haven for bacteria and using cracked or crazed ceramics for food is not recommended. Our food service items are glazed inside and out for maximal safety. Bison glazes are highly stain resistant. Stubborn marks can usually be removed with ceramic cook top cleaner.

When placing objects on furniture you should take care to avoid scratching. The foot ring of Bison ceramics is left unglazed during production and we later sand the base to smooth off any irregularities. It is quite safe to use fine sandpaper to do additional smoothing.

Special thanks

To the talented artisans and staff at Bison: Leanne Percival, Cathy Franzi, Michael Skewes, Justine Dunmore, Jenny O'Connell, (Lady) Lee Burke, Sarah Nelson, Kerry Jarius, Emma Starr, Neri Solomon, Sam Axelsen, Helen Tinsley, Jackie Lallemand, Cameron Webb, Adela Burrough, Judy Mulford, Deirdre Macdonnell, Mark Mitchell, Sally Quinlan, and Cathy Rindt. To Belinda at Cherry Seed (cherryseed[at]optusnet.com.au) for her wonderful cupcakes! To my wonderful and patient mother, Jeanette Tunks, who inspires me on a daily basis. To David Plummer for the photography and the web site design.