Project
ARUP
Country
Client
Year
Location
Our Role
Team
Collborators
Whadjuk Boodjar
ARUP
2025
Perth / Boorloo
Public Art and Cultural Activation Team
Peter Farmer, Miranda Farmer, Peter Farmer Junior, Jason Hirst, Rosie McCutcheon, Oliver Chiari
James Dudding, Julia Freiseisen
“We wanted to remind people who travel through the space of the older world – our connection to the natural environment.”
MIRANDA FARMER, CULTURAL ADVISOR
At the heart of this project was a shared commitment to sustainability, connection, and creating a workplace grounded in belonging. Working alongside the Arup client team and Hames Sharley, Peter Farmer Designs collaborated closely with the broader project team to embed authentic First Nations perspectives throughout the space.
The project was shaped through a genuine design process that honoured Country, culture, and community. Drawing on Noongar stories, knowledge, and connection to place, Peter Farmer integrated art and cultural narratives into the workplace environment to create a deeper sense of identity and meaning.
Designed as part of the Living Building Challenge, the workplace embraces regenerative and sustainable design principles, incorporating biophilic thinking, reused materials, and a strong connection to the natural environment. Peter Farmer’s contribution focused on ensuring the cultural elements were not simply decorative, but meaningfully embedded within the experience of the space itself, creating opportunities for reflection, connection, and shared understanding.
The completed workplace is a place where people can gather, collaborate, and exchange ideas while remaining connected to Country and community. Through this collaborative approach, the project reflects a shared vision for a future that recognises and celebrates the past, present, and future through design, culture, and sustainability.
This project was developed through a deeply collaborative co-design process, bringing together Arup, Hames Sharley, Peter Farmer Designs, cultural advisors, and the broader design team to create a workplace grounded in story, culture, and connection to Country.
Together, the team explored ways to integrate art, biophilic design, and cultural narratives throughout the space. Central to the project was the development of a design philosophy that connected old and new worlds expressing the organisation’s past, present, and future journey through layered storytelling and meaningful design interventions.
OUR DESIGN PROCESS
The project began through a collaborative design process between the Peter Farmer Team, ARUP and Hames Sharley, exploring how Noongar storytelling, workplace culture and regenerative thinking could become embedded within the spatial experience of the office. Inspired by the surrounding landscapes of Derbarl Yerrigan and Kaarta Gar-up, the team developed a series of interconnected artwork concepts grounded in movement, gathering, communication and seasonal change.
Working closely together, Peter Farmer and Peter Farmer Junior developed sculptural forms, graphic artworks and narrative pathways that connected the workplace back to Country while responding to the future-focused identity of ARUP.
Concepts were translated into detailed digital models, render studies and material investigations to explore how the artworks would integrate within the architecture and lighting systems of the workplace. Sculptural seed forms for the “Ngank” Excellence Hub and “Doonch Doonch” entry installation were developed through a combination of hand-built clay modelling, 3D scanning and digital fabrication workflows.
The team worked closely with ARUP’s lighting consultants and Hames Sharley to test lighting atmospheres, portability, spatial layouts and material finishes, ensuring each intervention responded cohesively to the wider workplace environment.
The fabrication phase combined traditional handmade processes with contemporary manufacturing techniques. Clay forms were hand-moulded by the artists before being cast into sculptural installations, while engraved timber, aluminium detailing, Jesmonite castings and environmental graphics were produced for integration throughout the workplace.
Materiality played a key role within the project, with charred timber, tactile cast surfaces and engraved Noongar language elements used to reinforce themes of regeneration, storytelling and connection to Country.
The final installation transformed the workplace into an immersive cultural environment, integrating sculptural artworks, digital graphics, lighting systems and spatial storytelling throughout the office. Artworks were embedded directly into circulation spaces, meeting rooms, kitchens, lockers and arrival areas to create a continuous narrative experience across all levels of the workplace.
Designed as a living workplace, several installations were intentionally adaptable and interactive, allowing the space to evolve over time through workshops, seasonal changes and ongoing engagement with staff and visitors.
The artwork and material selections throughout the workplace were designed to carry these stories. Key elements include the large sculptural welcome piece at the entry, in collaboration with ceramist Julia Freiseisen, symbolising ideas, growth, and gathering, as well as carved narratives inspired by the nearby river integrated into the locker detailing.
Handcrafted mouldings, in collaboration with artist James Dudding, in the kitchen each carry their own individual meaning and cultural significance, contributing to the richness of the overall experience.
An important part of the process involved working alongside Ingrid Cumming and Dr. Roma Winmar to respectfully incorporate Noongar language into the artwork and workplace wayfinding. These elements strengthen the connection to Whadjuk Noongar Country and ensure the space reflects both cultural authenticity and shared learning.
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