A series of rooms will be constructed in the gallery and each space will tell a story from the perspective of one of four designers: award-winning interior designer Rufus Knight, Te Papa curator of decorative art and design Justine Olsen, design critic and researcher Emma Ng, and artist and curator Ane Tonga.

“Four distinct visual languages will be reconstructed as interior scenes within the gallery – it is a cross-disciplinary approach that allowed a wide-ranging interpretation of domestic spaces,” says Kim Patton, Objectspace director.

Knight says his work within the exhibition will focus on sustainability, consumerism and waste. “We are looking at building waste by re-contextualising these reclaimed products and elevating them to be elegant and crafted – something you would expect to see in a gallery. The aim is to create a different read on something that is usually destined for landfill and turn it into a sensory experience.”

Olsen’s space has been created in collaboration with jeweller Karl Fritsch and looks at how a room can be configured for contemporary living in Aotearoa New Zealand. Emma Ng says that her room combines retail and art and seeks to ask questions about the story behind the objects people buy.

The final room, curated by Ane Tonga working with Cook Island artist Ani O’Neill, uses pare – hats made from floristry ribbon traditionally worn by women attending church – from work first exhibited as part of the end-of-year Elam School of Fine Arts sculpture exhibition in 1993.

Tonga says, “For me, domestic spaces are places of cultural learning. Interiors offer a spectrum of possibilities when it comes to thinking about art and culture. A living room frames lifetimes and is where rituals are learnt. Cultural learnings are often imbued in the objects and adornments of home.”

The Room exhibition will run from April 5 to May 19, 2109 at Objectspace, 13 Rose Road, Grey Lynn. For more information, visit objectspace.org.nz.