MArch Studio 2 is the first course in the graduate Architecture studio sequence. It is composed of two mini-studio components, each of which introduces a distinct discourse of architecture.

The first, 2A, explores the role of Systems within architecture. This extends from the conceptual (systems thinking) to the material (tectonic systems) to the environmental (ecological systems). Rather than the design of discrete objects, the primary focus is on organizational relationships between parts, components, and contexts. As these relationships can be dynamic and contingent—subject to both internal and external forces of change—an architecture of systems allows for the possibility of variation, adaptation, and a multiplicity of outcomes rather than a single convergent proposal.

The second, 2B, explores the role of Environments within architecture. This extends from the physical (light, air, orientation, scale) to the ecological/sustainable to the social/cultural/political. Having explored the relationships between parts in architectural systems in Studio 2A, we now extend the focus to architecture’s relationship to the external adjacencies and beyond. The understanding of these systems, with its multiplicity, variation and adaptation, can also be considered as change over time.