I initially honed my woodworking skills in a fine furniture diploma under Rowan Dicks (RD Furniture). In the years following, I gained a range of industry level experience, and eventually decided to lean into a more bespoke and personal pursuit. I now run a small design + make studio (Zarby Designs) based out of a workshop space in Henderson, Auckland.
My goal with Zarby Designs is to create much more than just functional furniture items, but pieces that influence the feeling of the space they’re in. I would love a world where people are more than simply ‘unafraid’ to have expression in their homes, but they value and strive for it.
Crafted in Auckland, by furniture maker Finnzarby Richwood
Further back:
I grew up on the port hills of Ōtautahi Christchurch, on a small, family run vineyard. My parents both held other jobs, but the vineyard allowed us all to stay connected to the land and, more importantly, each other.
It was here that my father would hand me tools as he built sheds and dug trenches, fixed irrigation lines and ran fencing. I will always be thankful for the support of my curiosity - it was never a waste if I required irrigation parts to make strange fountains, and my requests to screw or cut various objects were met obligingly and without a question as to why.
I believe it was through this ability to play that I developed an aptitude for the physical world.
Many years later, it could surprise some that I did not follow a so called ‘practical’ path at all. An opportunity arose for me to study my first love - music. And so, with three of my closest friends, I studied Jazz for three years, and had the most incredible experience of what music could bring.
And I believe it was through this play, that I developed a true appreciation for art.
I suppose the crux of it is exactly that - I’d like to create at the intersection between practical craft and art.