Brook Gossen with her bespoke rug.
Ever fantasised about a creative career? Two mums have discovered a new passion in life after studying design at the International School of Colour & Design.
Brook Gossen from Tarragindi in Queensland is floating on Cloud 9 after being named as the winner of the school’s Designer Rug’s annual Art on the Floor competition.
Brook’s design was chosen from 500 entries by 200 students and has been hand woven by Designer Rugs into a bespoke piece that sits alongside designs by Akira, Cloth, Dinosaur Designs and Easton Pearson.
Brook entered a competition to win a Foundation Course (Certificate IV in Design) via distance education at the iscd. She attended one of iscd’s workshops for distance education students in Sydney, where the “handmade and lace” trend was discussed in detail. “I was completely inspired. I brainstormed a few ideas and narrowed it down to a paper cut of a doily."
She embarked on creating a rug design sympathetic to this growing trend using a timeless handmade icon as inspiration. The result is a beautiful rug that resembles a doily design, a perfect way to introduce pattern and texture to living areas as well as creating a visual focus.
“Seeing my design go from a drawing in my sketchbook to a brief that was transformed into a rug was just amazing” Brook explains.
A busy mother of three young children under 6, Brook loves the flexibility of studying at her own pace and revels in the “me” time the foundation course allowed her.
“Being a mum is amazing but I always yearned for something where I could use my creativity. I’d like to start my own business to get my designs out there and I hope people will like them enough to buy them. I have a few more rug designs in mind and I am also working on a few ideas for bed linen ranges,” says Brooke.
Down in Sydney, International School of Colour & Design graduate Trudi Sommers has been putting her iscd qualifications to work as a colour consultant.
Trudi first completed a Foundation Course – Certificate IV in Design and then went on to complete the Colour Design Diploma.
She’s now taken on a colourful project for her local community after her expertise was sought on the new Prouille school development.
The Prouille Catholic School in Wahroonga where her 2 young boys attend is in the process of being rebuilt. After having discussions with the school’s principal, Mr Phillip Ledlin on the affects of colour on learning and how colour psychology has been used in schools, Trudi was asked to work on the schools new interior colours.
“Some things were already decided, like the neutral wall colours, but I was able to introduce Faber Birrens colour psychology theory for each of the classrooms feature walls”.
“Watching the way children think inspires you to think left of field sometimes”, explains Trudi. “I chose orange for the kindergarten classroom as it is good for communication and encourages cheerfulness. For years 1 and 2, I chose green for its balancing and calming effect in the classroom. For year 3 and 4, I chose blue for similar calming reasons to green, but it is also a more mature colour. Then for year 5 and 6, I chose a burgundy which encourages patience and reliable behaviour, a perfect shade for the older children.”
Trudi also consulted on the new library design. The schools librarian Jo Neilsen and Trudi worked closely on this project. They wanted colours that were fun, yet toned down slightly to offer a balance between creating a stimulating environment for the kids, whilst also providing a serene space. “We chose the trend colour of orange to give the library an eye catching and modern look. The colours were displayed across different surfaces including a mandarin coloured Laminex feature wall with coloured ottomans in purple and orange coordinated in with a fun new rug” Trudi said.
“Before having kids I was working as a journalist and styling for various magazines. I wanted something more for myself after having my kids and felt I needed to do something creative, Trudi said”.
“Balancing mothering, school and work commitments is the hardest element of being a working mum but I’ve become the master juggler and I like being a positive role model. My children see that you can achieve your goals through hard work and perseverance”.
Trudi has now established her own colour consutancy at trucolours.com.au.
About the International School of Colour and Design
Established in 1983 by Prue Royle, the school has a distinctive philosophy encompassing educational practices that care for and support individual creative development and inspire people to fulfil their dreams to work in a range of professions in the world of art and design.
All courses are industry recognised and offered part time. iscd specialises in career change and offers career advice, trend seminars and special events.
For more information about iscd, log onto iscd.edu.au
