{"id":27540,"date":"2025-11-27T08:39:19","date_gmt":"2025-11-27T00:39:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.curtin.edu.au\/friends\/?p=27540"},"modified":"2026-03-12T13:50:52","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T05:50:52","slug":"culture-creativity-and-connection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.curtin.edu.au\/friends\/culture-creativity-and-connection\/","title":{"rendered":"Culture, Creativity and Connection"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

26\/11\/2025. By Carmelle Wilkinson<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For William Peucker, discovering graphic design wasn\u2019t just about finding a career \u2013 it was about coming home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A proud Bardi man from the Pender Bay region in Western Australia, Will is in his final semester of a Bachelor of Design at Â鶹ֱ²¥.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thanks to the generosity of a stranger and the support of a Curtin Moorditj Maaman Scholarship, he\u2019s been able to fully dedicate himself to his studies \u2013 and to a future grounded in art, healing, and community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGrowing up, I never imagined I\u2019d be in the position I am today,\u201d Will said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cUniversity has been life-changing. It\u2019s given me the tools to express who I am and to heal through my art.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Raised in Esperance after spending his early childhood travelling around Australia, Will grew up disconnected from culture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy connection comes from my dad\u2019s side, but my parents weren\u2019t really connected to it either. I didn\u2019t grow up knowing that part of myself,\u2019\u2019 he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That began to change when he arrived at Curtin and joined St Catherine\u2019s College Dandjoo Darbalung program<\/a> \u2013 a unique initiative supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students through culturally safe accommodation and community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Will with Program Coordinator at Centre for Aboriginal Studies, Brendon DeGois at the 2025 Curtin Scholarships Event. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There, Will found more than a place to live.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He found mob who embraced him with open arms \u2013 regardless of how strong or recent his cultural connection was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s where my journey of reconnection really began,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last year, that reconnection deepened with a powerful return to Country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Travelling to back to country in the Dampier Peninsula, Will experienced a profound sense of belonging.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDriving into Country… it just felt different. You feel at home,\u201d he said.<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n


\u201cIt was healing being able to reconnect to country and meet my Aunty who was so warm and welcoming.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Will with Aunty saving a pelican on Country.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was actually at sunrise on the shores of Pender Bay in Dampier, that Will proposed to his partner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI knew I wanted to propose on Country. That place represents so much of who I am \u2013 and who I\u2019m becoming.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Will proposing to his partner on Country.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Will\u2019s journey into design wasn\u2019t straight forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like many young people, he initially followed the path others had mapped out \u2013 enrolling in engineering under the growing push for STEM careers.
But something didn\u2019t feel right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A gentle nudge from his partner to consider graphic design ended up the shift he needed, and from the first semester on, he knew he\u2019d found his purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, Will\u2019s design work is shaped by culture, lived experience, and an unwavering commitment to uplift others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His style is bold, honest and deeply personal \u2013 and eventually he hopes to build a platform that gives voice to other Indigenous creatives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not just about my art \u2013 it\u2019s about giving back,\u2019\u2019 he said.<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Will said the Moorditj Maaman Scholarship had been more than financial support \u2013 it\u2019s been the freedom to breathe, focus, and thrive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s taken so much pressure off,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNot worrying about rent or food means I can show up as my best self \u2013 in class, in life, in everything.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

That support helped him excel last semester, finishing with a course-weighted average of 79.79 and 90 in a core unit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, with just one unit left, Will is focused on building his portfolio and entering the design industry ready to make a difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After graduation, he and his fianc\u00e9e plan to move to Denmark in WA\u2019s Great Southern \u2013 a quiet, creative town where he hopes to establish a collective to support and collaborate with other First Nations artists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Will on the jetty.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

He also plans to return to Country every year to continue learning from Elders, family, and the land \u2013carrying forward the stories and responsibilities entrusted to him by his aunties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTo anyone who feels like they\u2019re too disconnected or it\u2019s too late \u2013 it\u2019s not. It\u2019s never too late,\u201d Will said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOpportunities like this scholarship can change your life. Just go for it. You never know where it might take you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To learn more about Curtin’s scholarship opportunities, please contact give@curtin.edu.au <\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

___<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n \n\n

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