It’s hard to believe that 10 years

have gone by since the Living Arts(Engine) program was created. Founded in 2010, the program has been an integral part of a larger initiative designed to unite the 4 north campus schools and colleges in interdisciplinary creative work through the ArtsEngine program. During this time it has provided a living learning environment for students to more closely explore creative work across disciplines while also providing them with an open, friendly community in which to learn about themselves, make friends and gain a sense of belonging from their very first day on campus.

Our program has evolved significantly since its inception and continues to play a pivotal role in providing first-year students with a foundation for creative exploration — both through our Introduction to Creative Process course and the Collaborative Creative Projects. We are proud to be one  of a series of opportunities at UM that prepare our students for an increasingly complex world — one  that urgently demands creativity, collaboration, and strong critical thinking skills for success.

Over the years we have seen an increase in the size of the community, growth of an active alumni program, integration of a robust academic component and exposure to guest artists, workshops and technology to further support our students'  creative production.

We have also further defined our mission and vision toward interdisciplinary work across engineering and the arts through effective communication and alignment, giving us the impetus to rebrand ourselves this past year from Living Arts to Living ArtsEngine.

We are very proud and honored to have worked with hundreds of amazing students who have come through our program, and we can't wait to see what each new fall cohort will bring.

We are looking forward to a very bright future that lays ahead of us - bring on the next 10 years!

Student Spotlights

Zaynab Alsaedy

First-Year Student: Living ArtsEngine 2019-2020

College of Engineering ‘23

John Roselli

Peer Mentor: Living ArtsEngine 2018-2019, 2019-2020

School of Music Theatre & Dance ‘22

Srishti Gupta

Living ArtsEngine 2015-2016, 2016-2017

Stamps School of Art & Design ‘19

Mitchell Curtiss

Living ArtsEngine 2014-2015, 2015-2016, 2016-2017, 2017-2018

Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning ‘18

Click on each circle to view a photo gallery from that year.