Twist ties are locking mechanisms we are used to losing or misplacing, usually without even noticing or minding, because we consider them rather valueless. Even if we use them daily, in multiple different ways, most would agree that they are disposable, irrelevant objects with extremely mundane functions. In other words, no twist tie will ever make it to MOMA’s permanent collection, despite the fact that anybody thinking about twist ties enough would agree that they are extremely versatile, user-friendly everyday objects. They are abundant and inexpensive, in many ways examples of good anonymous design: a simple piece of wire or the right gauge coated with plastic or even paper so that the user won’t hurt her/his hands. Their uses are numerous: we find them in the bags of potatoes we purchase at the supermarket; neatly holding cables in a bundle or in the garden; or securing tomato plants to bamboo stakes, to name a few. They are often visible on top of the kitchen counter, when the loaf of bread has been used up and there is no need to tie the bag anymore, and quickly thrown away, as we do with many other anonymous, well-designed, inexpensive everyday objects. A twist tie is not something we could not live without; but it adds value, convenience and comfort to our everyday situations. It is unfailing, reliable and intuitive to use: and it has the gift of variable form every time it is reused.
