Offering architectural and design services to a multitude of sectors, Rothelowman pride themselves on their ability to provide solutions to all who walk through the door. The recently finished Perth Studio embraces the firm’s ethos and signatures with a little help from Laminex and the TrueScale™ range to achieve outsized proportions and wonderful authenticity - embodying both the city and the Western Australian identity.
Rothelowman’s Perth Studio is nothing if not the perfect example of the modern office - organised, human-centred and deeply connected to its place - never losing sight of the task at hand as a place to encourage creativity and collaboration to design beautiful spaces.
The studio is subtle, warm, and inviting, full of textures, tones, and detail. A large part of that is Laminex, with six décors employed throughout the space to convey a sense of place, personality, and scale. The hero of the space is Laminex Light Jarrah TrueScale™ AbsoluteGrain® from the Australian Natives Collection, introducing an unmistakably Perth sensibility and honouring a species deeply embedded in the region’s architectural and cultural identity.
This connection is felt most powerfully at the ‘heart of the space’: the Viking table. It’s hard to miss. The Perth Viking table is huge and certainly makes a statement. It nails the local vernacular but is also the perfect demonstration of Next Generation Woodgrains and the precise nature with which it can be utilised. The exacting corners and edge detailing create striking slab-like effects, while the tactility and authenticity of AbsoluteGrain® evoke a timeless connection to natural materials.
“Every studio at Rothelowman has their own Viking table. The name Viking table symbolises that it is a really big table,” laughs Lofflerova, “the bigger the better, and so far, the one we have in Perth is probably the best one.”
The stacked and layered design of the table nods to Schoonens’ grandfather’s piece in the lobby, linked by craftsmanship and style, location and story. It may be subliminal, but when dealing with design, a feeling of connection - of being part of something - imbues a sense of purpose, which in turn, ensures productive collaboration, allowing community to develop and thrive.
“Laminex’s TrueScale® technology has really allowed us to fully embrace the large, oversized joinery pieces that we have throughout the studio. They have no repeating pattern lines in them and this is really evident both in the Jarrah joinery that separates the collaboration hub from the rest of the studio, but also the oversized table, as you can see that it looks like it like a single piece of Jarrah furniture, which was really important for us through our design process to embrace,” says Schoonens.
Rothelowman’s Perth studio is broken into 3 more key areas. Beyond the Laminex Light Jarrah TrueScale™ AbsoluteGrain® dividing wall there is the kitchen, main studio with meeting rooms, and entry foyer. Laminex Macedon Mist softens the working space with its gentle blue hue. It is peaceful, tranquil, calming, as a studio workspace should be. Yet, earth tones reign supreme in the rest of the office. Laminex Moroccan Clay AbsoluteMatte®, Laminex Kalamata AbsoluteMatte®, and Laminex Pillarbox feel appropriately Western Australian and continue to be bold, fun, and ‘of place’.
“Laminex is a material that is a staple in our palette - we use it in the majority of our projects - because of their beautiful range of colours and textures,” says Lofflerova.
Left: Laminex Kalamata AbsoluteMatte® meeting room tables accompanied by Laminex Macedon Mist cabinetry. Right: Laminex Light Jarrah TrueScale™ AbsoluteGrain® flows into the kitchen, alongside a Laminex Moroccan Clay AbsoluteMatte® benchtop and splashback and internal cabinetry.
“It’s amazing the number of people when they enter this office for the first time comment that it doesn’t feel like an office space. It feels like coming into someone’s home. We craft places for people to live, and it was really important that this studio represents that,” says Schoonens. “The space is designed to shift away from corporate formality toward something more human, making the act of design visible in everyday practice.”
“We really wanted people to feel comfortable when they come here, and feel relaxed, because creativity is a positive thing and we really want everyone to immerse themselves in the creative process when they’re here,” reiterates Lofflerova, of the importance of design.
In an increasingly fragmented world, the human touch – craft and stories – is becoming more important to how we connect and find our place. The search for what feels real and authentic will be essential to the creativity and community that grow from it. For both clients and staff, building connections with each other, the surroundings and the location help lift the experience beyond the mundane. More than a gesture or afterthought, Rothelowman’s Perth Studio speaks to the team’s core values and the commitment to quality that defines the practice.
Learn more about Rothelowman on their website.
Credits:
Architect: Rothelowman
Builder: Opra Projects
Photography: Dion Robeson
Video: The Local Project
Banner image features the custom viking table in Laminex Light Jarrah TrueScale™ AbsoluteGrain®.
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