Decus Interiors’ founder Alexandra Donohoe Church lets us into her firm’s new Sydney studio, where she believes serendipitous moments spark creative ideas

Building a successful interior design practice means not only being a talented designer, but also being skilled in business and HR. ‘You don’t learn about people management when you study design. You work that out on the fly,’ says Alexandra Donohoe Church, founder and managing director of Decus Interiors. ‘At Decus, we’ve pushed ourselves to learn our craft, and simultaneously built a team that feels more like a family.’

In 2020, Church’s people management skills were put to the test as COVID-19 restrictions meant that most of her team was working from home. Now they’re back in the studio four days of the week. One day is reserved for focused productivity at home , while being in the office the rest of the time fosters greater creativity and energy. ‘We get beautiful, serendipitous moments where a fresh idea arises during a conversation or workshop and it takes us in a different direction,’ Church says. ‘We need to be feeling each other’s energy — that’s the challenge of working remotely.’

Church designed Decus’ new Sydney studio as a space for the multidisciplinary team to exchange knowledge, spark ideas and be inspired by their surroundings and colleagues. Located in a Victorian terrace in Woollahra, the office is filled with light, and its arched windows and elaborate ironwork have an enduring street presence. ‘Our space is an experimentation of opposing elements. It’s delicate and strong, feminine and masculine. We love this sense of eclecticism and contradiction,’ Church says.

The front room is designed like a lounge area with showcase pieces by favourite artists, designers and makers, including a Pierre Paulin-designed sofa, a work by artist Petrina Hicks and rug by Robyn Cosgrove rug. ‘We wanted it to feel like a residence because that’s our focus,’ Church says. She’s passionate about experimental design and curates and rotates the furniture, art and objects on a regular basis. The room serves as a waiting and meeting area for clients and suppliers, and a workshop space for the team. ‘It’s a comfortable place to have a project meeting, to sketch, touch materials or lay samples out, and those are the kinds of things we need to be physically present for,’ she says.

Workstations at the back of the studio open on to a spacious courtyard where the team can share meals, socialise, relax and host events. Humorous quotes calligraphed up the staircase wall reflect the playful, cheeky nature of Decus, while images of furniture, lighting, art and objects pinned to the opposite wall are collated for client presentations.

Being back in the studio together, the team have refined their productivity having worked remotely, and are relishing the daily interactions that spark creative ideas, often in unanticipated ways. As Church notes, ‘It’s the alchemy of those magical moments that you can’t quantify.’

Text / Rebecca Gross

Read more about Alexandra Donohoe Church’s journey and how she realised her passion for residential design