Our Process
Reflecting Aboriginal systems of renewal, where nothing is wasted and everything has purpose.
Overview
Designed & led by Erin McDonald, Co-Founder and Interior Designer, the collection champions cultural preservation and traditional knowledge systems as the foundation of design, ensuring authenticity, integrity and respect for Country.
Through a highly collaborative and iterative process with Industrial Designer Tom Skeehan, the ‘Deep Time’ collection came to life - a series of furniture pieces that embody resilience, continuity, and the connection between people, place, and culture.
Each has been carefully designed to embody the concept of ‘Deep Time’, creating a cohesive narrative and a strong, unified identity across the 9-piece collection.
Soft curves, considered joins, and intentional expressions of form are used throughout to reflect a sense of flow, continuity, and connection. Mark-making is subtly embedded within the design language, referencing cultural practice and traditional knowledge systems.
Through detail and intention, each piece becomes a distinct yet interconnected expression of the shared story, creating a seamless balance between individuality and collective identity.
This collection not only redefines what design collaboration can look like between Indigenous and non-Indigenous design practitioners but also sets a precedent for how cultural values can inform and transform contemporary furniture design.
The collaboration with Skeehan became an important exchange of knowledge - combining cultural understanding with technical design expertise. Tom brought care and attention to the key drivers of the collection, responding thoughtfully and with sensitivity to the intent behind the work.
Tom also brought strong relationships with our factory partners, which helped support a smooth and considered development process from design through to production.
Our factory partners played a vital role in shaping the final outcome of the collection. Their technical expertise, material knowledge, and problem-solving capabilities were essential while maintaining the cultural integrity of the designs. This exchange became a true collaboration, where detailing, fabrication methods, and material constraints informed and refined the collection.
Each piece incorporates handcrafted and precision-made components, brought together through a shared commitment to care, craft, and process.
Our processes are considered as part of a living system rather than as standalone objects. Materials are chosen for how they age, how they are cared for, and how they invite interaction. They contribute to the broader story of Deep Time, revealing how surfaces evolve within space and over time.
There is an emphasis on raw, natural components that are not fixed in their final state but instead remain open to change and patina. In this way, the materials are considered with the idea that they can eventually return to their natural state, reinforcing a cyclical understanding of use, time, and transformation.
Timber is more than a material; it is a living connection to Country. It carries the memory of place, climate, and time, shaped by the environments it has grown within. The hero material of the collection, it becomes a way of continuing that relationship, transforming what is taken from Country into forms that remain grounded in material memory.
Each grain, knot, and variation speaks to the uniqueness of individual trees and the ecosystems they belong to. Rather than being treated as uniform or disposable, timber is understood as having its own character and agency. Working with it requires listening - responding to its natural direction, strengths, and limitations rather than forcing it into control.
In Aboriginal design thinking, this approach aligns with principles of sustainability and responsibility. Materials are not separate from culture or place; they are part of a continuous system of relationships between people, Country, and knowledge. Using timber in this collection therefore becomes an act of translation - bringing the concept of ‘Deep Time’ into everyday objects that hold both function and meaning.
Tom SkeehanSkeehan StudioCreative DirectorA lot of the work was about refinement and restraint. Understanding what to keep, what to remove, and how materials behave over time. The collection was shaped through workshops, prototyping, factory collaboration, and ongoing conversation.