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Virginia Tech

An Architectural Response to Cultural Diversity; The Mosaic: International Student Housing

Abstract

dc:description.abstract

"We build dwellings that, perhaps, satisfy most of our physical needs, but which do not house our mind."-- Juhani Pallasmaa My architecture thesis began with the question of the relationship and threshold between the realms of public and private and familiar and unfamiliar, while looking particularly in residential spaces. Humans consciously or unconsciously "use" the idea of their "home" environment to express something about themselves. The question that arose from this dialogue captured my attention which led me to explore a deeper meaning of what would be an ideal home for students like myself- ones who were starting a new chapter of their lives by moving to a foreign country. The idea of "Home" as a symbol of ones self, is a set of rituals, personal rhythms and routines of everyday life. The idea of Home cannot be produced all at once; it has a dimension of time and is a gradual product of the family's and individual's adaptation to the world. My thesis project has explored and proposed an architectural response to cultural diversity through student housing for existing Washington D.C. Metropolitan Area universities. The Mosaic is a place to express the personality and define the vessels of memories between individuals and society.

Degree

thesis:*
Name thesis:degree_name
Master of Urban and Regional Planning
Level thesis:degree_level
masters
Discipline thesis:degree_discipline
Urban and Regional Planning
Department dc:contributor.department
Public and International Affairs
Grantor dc:publisher
Virginia Tech
Year dc:date.issued
2013

Author and committee

dc:creator, dc:contributor.*
Author dc:creator
  • Ghassemieh, Negar
Chair dc:contributor.committeechair
  • Morton, Elizabeth
Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember
  • Wernstedt, Kris F.
  • Hyra, Derek S.

Subjects

dc:subject × 7

Rights

dc:rights
Statement dc:rights
  • In Copyright

Identifiers

dc:identifier.*
Dc Identifier Other
vt_gsexam:221
OAI identifier oai:identifier
oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/51654

Chain of custody

source
Harvested from
Virginia Tech
Base URL
vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/oai/request
Last updated
2026-07-22
Source record
OAI-PMH GetRecord
citation

Ghassemieh, Negar. An Architectural Response to Cultural Diversity; The Mosaic: International Student Housing. masters thesis, Virginia Tech, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/51654