Rob Farmer
Designer, Illustrator, Motion Designer
In their own words
You can look at anything around you and wonder how you could interpret this in design or motion.
I often like to find patterns in nature and try to think of them as design algorithms or codes, such as how repeating shapes and forms can mimic those patterns found in nature.
I was headstrong about creating space for my work that was outside the bounds of client work, agency hierarchy, and feedback.
The original sketch for the piece was this very loose half-baked idea of an em-dash tattoo.
Matt really saw the vision and pushed me to make it better and better.
Through sharing my work, I hope I can encourage people to share their work – I think there would be a lot of great work out there that never gets shared because of perfectionism.
You can look at anything around you and wonder how you could interpret this in design or motion.
I often like to find patterns in nature and try to think of them as design algorithms or codes, such as how repeating shapes and forms can mimic those patterns found in nature.
I was headstrong about creating space for my work that was outside the bounds of client work, agency hierarchy, and feedback.
I like the procedural nature of it, seeing how digital parameters like noise, randomisers and more can mimic those patterns in nature.
Articles & interviews3
- Rob Farmer transforms rough sketches into New York Times covers
Melbourne-based motion designer Rob Farmer explains how he develops quick, unfinished sketches into personal experiments and editorial commissions. His procedural approach in Cavalry draws on patterns in nature and has led to work for The New York Times, The Economist and the Design Museum, while he advocates sharing work before perfectionism prevents it from being seen.
- Rob Farmer transforms rough sketches into New York Times covers
Melbourne-based motion designer Rob Farmer describes how he turns quick, unfinished sketches into a working queue of personal and commissioned ideas. The profile traces his path from Geelong and agency work in Brooklyn to editorial commissions for The New York Times, The Economist and the Design Museum, with Cavalry's procedural tools central to his practice.
- Rob Farmer Unveils Glitchy, Nature-Inspired Generative Animations
The article profiles Melbourne-based designer and illustrator Rob Farmer, whose generative animations like the 'Data Blooms' series explore natural patterns through digital motion. Using Cavalry, Farmer creates kinetic, algorithmic compositions inspired by the natural world. His work bridges personal experimentation and professional commissions for clients like Google and Coinbase.