Working on an interior design brief as a part of degree

Interior Design students from Billy Blue College of Design have had the honour of creating an office (for a top company) that actually makes employees want to come to work every day. In 2017, Brisbane Interior Design students were given a live brief by Struber, a stakeholder engagement and communications agency, to use their pizazz and design their new Brisbane office. What an incredible opportunity!

At Billy Blue College of Design, it’s important that everything students learn adds real value to their career – and there’s no better way to ensure this than by giving them the chance to get hands-on experience out there in the real world.

Bachelor of Interior Design (Commercial) students Paul Turley, Ashleigh Rundle and Melinda Taylor (with the guidance of their teachers) benefitted from such an opportunity with Struber, getting involved in the whole process of working with a client, developing an idea and delivering it.

The students started off by understanding exactly what Struber wanted their new office to look and feel like. The space was light and airy, a traditional and a classic heritage building in Brisbane. However, they wanted something different to keep in line with their vision of an elegant and contemporary workplace, with a focus on flexibility and wellness, and creating memorable moments.

Lots of different concepts and phrases were used by the client, from “Virgin lounge feel” and “digital city building theme” through to “mothership”. Interesting things can pop into the head when those contrasting words are spoken and it was a challenge for our students to deliver what Struber hoped for.

Of course, they figured it out and produced exactly what Struber had envisioned. Paul, Ashleigh and Melinda created a zone that was engaging, futuristic, influential and sophisticated to say the least, each with their own unique and important parts to play in the project. Check out their spatial plan:

Live briefs provide an awesome opportunity for our students to gain industry experience and professional exposure. Thank you to Struber for choosing and trusting Billy Blue Brisbane students to design and fit-out your “mothership” – we know they loved working with you!

If you’re interested in following in Paul, Ashleigh and Melinda’s footsteps, have a look at our Interior Design courses. Got questions? We look forward to hearing from you via our Contact Us page.