Beyond the Status Quo: StudioBE's 20-Year Journey to Evidence-Based Wellbeing Design
Bank Australia - Retail Rollout, Canberra
When Sonja Duric escaped a corporate practice after just eleven months, she had a simple vision: recreate the joy she'd experienced at Artillery London, but in Melbourne. Twenty years later, that rebellious spirit has evolved into something profound—a practice that doesn't just design beautiful spaces, but proves they make people happier, healthier, and more human.
The Team That Stayed Together
What began as Artillery Melbourne has become StudioBE, and remarkably, the core team remains intact through partnerships with Group GSA and now Hames Sharley. "I think everybody recognises that there's a genuine culture of problem-solving," Sonja explains. "A single problem is everyone's problem, as opposed to 'it's your fault.' There's a lot of trust and empowerment."
This isn't corporate speak—it's lived experience. "When you genuinely trust people and empower them to be free, to follow what they think and their dreams, they are so happy with that," she continues. "They've returned that through incredible hard work and loyalty."
The Research Revolution
What sets StudioBE apart isn't just its values—it's its evidence. While the industry relies on white papers, StudioBE collaborates with academics and contributes to publishing peer-reviewed research in academic journals. Their Working Brain project emerged from a simple realisation: there was a gap in understanding how to design for neurodiversity.
"We found there wasn't anything tying it together," Sonja explains. "Research pertained to graphic design—font sizes for dyslexia—but not spatial qualities." They discovered that someone with dyslexia navigates through landmarks, that autistic people need order, and that sensory sensitivities link ADHD, autism, and processing differences.
The research challenged assumptions. "What surprised me is how distracting views to the outside can be for someone who is autistic or has heightened sensory processing differences," Sonja admits. "Everyone wants to be near the window, but there's this need to design spaces that are very neutral, calming, and plain to achieve equilibrium."
Proving What Hearts Know
This evidence-based approach extends to trauma-informed design, where StudioBE has learned that "people can be either calmed—their anxiety and stress de-escalated through design—or heightened because of poor design." Sharp corners, high reception desks, glass barriers—all can retraumatise vulnerable people seeking help.
The Vision
Looking ahead, Sonja's ambition is beautifully simple. When people enter StudioBE spaces, "they smile and say, 'This is so comfortable, this is so homely.'" Others describe their work as "like a hug."
As StudioBE launches—it’s not just challenging industry orthodoxy, it’s proving that when spaces serve human comfort and joy, everything else follows: creativity, collaboration, and yes, even profit.
Because ultimately, StudioBE believes good design should make people want to BE there.