The University of Michigan’s Taubman College recently launched Studio Reassembled, a new 1,500 sf pilot studio environment and experiment in collaborative design that dissolves the traditional student-to-desk arrangement. Encouraging students to move beyond passive learning, it’s created a space for shared exploration and action-oriented design education.
Spearheaded by the Academic Initiatives team, a community outreach process brought together students, faculty, staff, and alumni to envision a new type of learning environment for the undergraduate and graduate levels. A faculty RFQ was issued for creating both central and everyday elements, and the result is a vibrant bricolage that balances cohesion with a celebration of independent, modular parts. Built collaboratively ahead of the fall 2024 semester, Studio Reassembled is an open studio space that bridges spatial, technological, and natural worlds. It cultivates an environment where learning thrives through dynamic peer exchange, experimental projects, and flexible instructional pathways.
Featuring an embedded consultancy model, Studio Reassembled provides on-floor access to expertise in Environmental Science & Climate Engineering, Visualization Technology, and Library Science, ensuring real-time support for interdisciplinary project needs.
The “Cyclodrama” at the heart of the studio is a cylindrical amphitheater with integrated project and video technology that’s designed to host intimate and interactive guest lectures, student presentations, and critiques. Its exterior surface doubles as a books and materials micro-library. Bespoke booths and acoustic partitions designed by students and alumni create a unique and ever-changing workspace, one that showcases student aesthetic experiments with cladding that’s easy to swap out.
Studio Reassembled breaks down barriers between students, faculty, and staff, fostering an informal atmosphere through anchor pavilions that allows them to connect and share resources. Offering nimble and adaptable workspaces, Studio Reassembled serves as a living lab to test spacemaking, aesthetics, and organizational principles, offering a contemporary model for professional practice.