Jacqueline Cunningham

Background

About Jacqueline Cunningham

Design’ amazes me! Endless possibilities and the unique ability of a well-designed interior in triggering an emotional and physical response by the user is remarkable. The impacts can be truly astonishing, even life-changing. My love of art and design led me into Interior Design, one that has taken me to the other side of the world and one that has allowed me the privilege to work on some incredible projects of varying scale and complexity and with wonderful and talented clients and colleagues.The ability to create an office environment, a residential setting, a public building; like the Perth Arena; medical and mental healthcare environments or an aged care setting, and have that place become a home, a space for wellness, an engaging, meaningful and considered response to a specific set of parameters through the mechanisms of the creative process and really listening to the client, is an amazing journey. Healthcare, Aged Care and Design for Dementia particularly resonate with me. Working with clients to realise a design that positively benefits the resident or patient, at some of the most vulnerable moments in their life, by holding at the core of the design their needs and values, is incredibly rewarding. Having had family members experience dementia in aged care, work in this area is of enormous personal significance to me.My desire to research, observe and find the solution in the creative space between the purpose and the aesthetic is never-ending. I find myself, strangely, loving examining standards and compliance,(I am not sure that this is something that is supposed to be enjoyed). Seamlessly integrating constraints and legislation into a beautiful design is a fascinatingly meaningful task, one that applies intelligence to design. My personal reward, is when I know that the people that use the spaces I have designed, have had an honest and true connection with the space, and that it has enriched their lived experience.