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Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Institute for archaeology: a study in place

Abstract

dc:description.abstract

<i>"Whoever attempts to solve the riddle of space in the abstract will construct the outline of emptiness and call it space. Whoever attempts to meet man in the abstract will speak with his echo and call this a dialogue. Man still breathes in and out. When is Architecture going to do the same?"</i>¹ In order to develop a language in architecture, an architect spends a lifetime building and refining the grammar and expressions he or she uses. With study and an understanding of place, one can use architectural language to develop a dialogue with place. Without dialogue the architecture is empty. This interpretation of Aldo Van Eyck's statement is a beginning for this effort in design. The site, the "place," was chosen first for values which make it unique, and the project and its program were developed later. The observation of place extended from the physical environment, its history, and culture, to other aspects which make up the "spirit of place," as described by Christian Norberg-Schulz. The attempt was then to design in relation to aspects which I felt were important to the place, to create a dialogue.

Degree

thesis:*
Name thesis:degree_name
Master of Architecture
Level thesis:degree_level
masters
Discipline thesis:degree_discipline
Architecture
Department dc:contributor.department
Architecture
Grantor dc:publisher
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Year dc:date.issued
1992

Author and committee

dc:creator, dc:contributor.*
Author dc:creator
  • Skow, Manuel Erik
Chair dc:contributor.committeechair
  • Hunt, Gregory K.
Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember
  • Holt, Jaan
  • Brown, William W.

Rights

dc:rights
Statement dc:rights
  • In Copyright
Language dc:language.iso
en_US

Identifiers

dc:identifier.*
Handle dc:identifier.uri
http://hdl.handle.net/10919/52123
OAI identifier oai:identifier
oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/52123

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
related terms
citation

Skow, Manuel Erik. Institute for archaeology: a study in place. masters thesis, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1992. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/52123