Adam Jones – My Australia

Adam is a rising Sydney-based textile artist who works primarily with tufting, a technique that uses a specialised “gun” to fire yarn through stretched canvas at high speed. His work sits somewhere between painting and sculpture. It’s highly visual, yet intensely physical, resulting in truly one-of-a-kind creations.

What’s your perfect weekend getaway in Australia with your wife?

We live a pretty hectic life, especially with April’s work schedule, so our ideal getaway is usually something quiet, indulgent and uncomplicated. We both appreciate the finer things in life, so for us, it’s less about adventure and more about slowing down—a beautiful luxury hotel retreat, incredible food, a spa treatment and copious amounts of Aussie snacks.

Your favourite Aussie meal?

Not exactly a meal, but I’m low-key obsessed with Vegemite Shapes and hummus. It’s elite snack food. But if we’re talking iconic Aussie cuisine, nothing beats a Bunnings snag on a Saturday afternoon after a frantic rush for tufting supplies!

As an artist, what inspires you about the Australian way of life?

As a British expat, I was initially drawn to Australia for the beaches, sunshineand laid-back lifestyle. I spent much of my time in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, particularly Bondi, and quickly fell in love with the sense of community that exists there.

I grew up in a small village in Derbyshire in the UK, where there was a strong sense of belonging and connection. After travelling extensively throughout my twenties, I was always searching for a place that felt like a “home away from home” —somewhere with warmth, familiarity and community spirit. I truly feel Sydney, and especially the eastern suburbs, offers exactly that.

What inspires me most is the way people from all walks of life come together here. There’s a shared appreciation for the beauty of the coastline, the lifestyle, the architecture and the everyday moments that make Sydney so unique. Living and working here, I draw constant inspiration from my surroundings, from iconic landmarks and coastal scenes to overlooked architectural patterns and human behaviours.

How did you discover this unique skill with yarn?

I actually discovered tufting during one of my late-night Instagram doom-scrolling sessions. The video showed the traditional method of tufting using a manual tufting tool, a technique that dates back thousands of years, and I was instantly fascinated.

What really captured my attention was the idea of using textiles, particularly yarn, as a medium for artistic expression. The process felt incredibly raw, tactile and immersive. I loved the idea of creating artwork that wasn’t just visual, but physical and textural, too.

From there, curiosity quickly turned into obsession. I bought my first tufting gun, taught myself through trial and error, and completely fell in love with the process.

Talk us through the process of creating the art.

Every piece begins with a moment of inspiration. It could be something I notice while wandering through the neighbourhood, a particular sunset I’ve captured on my iPhone, or even a familiar building or landmark I’ve passed.

Once I have a clear direction for the composition, I sketch the design onto stretched canvas mounted to a handmade timber frame. From there, I essentially “colour in” the design using a pneumatic tufting gun and an assortment of coloured yarns. After many hours, and usually far too many skeins of wool later, the initial tufting phase is complete.

The backside is then glued to secure the fibres before I attach a protective backing fabric. The final stage is where the piece truly comes to life: I use specialised trimming and sculpting tools to carve depth, texture and dimension into the yarn, creating different pile heights and tactile details that give the artwork its signature look and feel.

How do you exhibit your work? How do people see it?

At the moment, my main platforms are @Tufty_Co on Instagram and my website, Tufty.co, although I’m currently planning an exhibition later this year to showcase a collection of new works.

What is the plan for your business over the next 12 months?

My biggest goal over the next 12 months is to transition into creating art full-time, supported by larger-scale commissions and collaborative projects. Tufting has become incredibly personal to me; it’s like meditation, where I switch off and just let the design flow through me, so the idea of turning that passion into my everyday career would be a dream come true.

Alongside commissioned work, I’m also planning two new collections. Both collections will eventually be available through my website, and I’m excited to continue evolving the storytelling side of my work through these new series.