The interior of Assembly House is continuously remade through collaborations among students, tradespeople, artists, designers, architects and others, in order to build a new model for living and working together in a city.
A Center for City Building Imagination
Assembly House is an immersive artwork by Dennis Maher and Assembly House 150 that transforms a historic former church into a continuously evolving architectural dreamworld. This total environment consists of an ever-changing ensemble of restored and newly-built architectural fragments, sculptural furnishings, models, and other artifacts, interwoven with layers of the surrounding building. The reimagined church is a place of architectural discovery and inspiration. It gives expression to the act of building and to the city as forms of collective art.
The installations within Assembly House are conceived as miniature buildings and parts of buildings that provide spaces for individual and shared experiences. Workshop and tool areas; collection displays; spaces for exhibition, gathering, and study; and books, models, and drawings overlay with defining features of the church—including gothic arches, ornamental wood, plaster, and stained glass.
Constructed in collaboration with tradespeople, designers, artists, students, and others, the assembled components are social as well as material. Participants in AH150 programs work on the adaptation of the building and on other creative projects, acquiring and sharing skills in construction arts.
