This is a cool article about how cities are employing architects and engineers to create signature bridges, such as what we are doing here in Dallas, that not only make statements about the city itself but to exploit bridges as great monuments of design, to foster pride in the residents and promote themselves as a destination for tourists.
The lead image for the article is Dallas' own Santiago Calatrava designed Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge with one of the best photographs I have ever seen of the bridge! Clicking on "View original size" of the picture in the article enlarges it to a huge size with stunning clarity and sharpness ... you can see someone standing in their window at The House!
21 bridge images total are showcased in the article ...
How Bridges Evolved Into Signifiers of Urban Identity
by Ella Thorns, ArchDaily.com, 2 November, 2017
Increasingly close collaboration between architects and engineers has caused an explosion in bridge design over the last few decades, resulting in structures that are both bold yet rational. As a result, cities have exploited bridges as great monuments of design, to foster pride in the residents and promote themselves as a destination for tourists. These ideas have inspired photographer Greig Cranna as he travels the world, capturing the elegance of today's bridge infrastructure.
Cranna has been documenting some of his stunning photography on Instagram, collating it over the past 20 months into a forthcoming book, Sky Architecture—The Transformative Magic of Today's Bridges. In capturing these entrancing structures, the photos show the impact of the bridges as an addition to the landscape and revel in their contemporary silhouettes and designs.
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Full article: https://www.archdaily.com/882096/how-bridges-evolved-into-signifiers-of-urban-identity/?ad_medium=myarchdaily&ad_name=bookmark-show
Margaret Hunt Hill bridge by Santiago Calatrava
- Tivo_Kenevil
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Re: Margaret Hunt Hill bridge by Santiago Calatrava
Cool picture and article. The Erasmus bridge in Rotterdam is cool. I love that bridge. It's such an awesome modern design.
BTW, when will Margaret McDermott bridge be done? Wasn't it scheduled to be completed in the summer? I posted this question in another thread months ago. But I guess no one knows..
BTW, when will Margaret McDermott bridge be done? Wasn't it scheduled to be completed in the summer? I posted this question in another thread months ago. But I guess no one knows..
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Re: Margaret Hunt Hill bridge by Santiago Calatrava
Dallas needs (at least) one more bridge from Calatrava to complete the set.
Re: Margaret Hunt Hill bridge by Santiago Calatrava
Too bad the I-35E bridge isn't able to be retrofitted later. Not sure what kind of arch/suspension structure would go with such a wide bridge... maybe a double set of I-30 style arches since each directional set of lanes on I-35E is widely divided?
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Re: Margaret Hunt Hill bridge by Santiago Calatrava
I am more interested in what goes below the bridges than another waste of federal funds on a fancier than needed bridge by a Spanish architect. I understand the value of branding and iconic imagery for our cities overall brand but I will not support another dime wasted on another fake bridge like the I-30 arches. I call Dallas Double D bridge for a reason. They killed the plan for a third bridge a long time ago and that reason was very sound to even today's standards. We didn't even get the full I-30 bridge we got two arches to make it look like we got a fancier bridge. The only benefit we did get is they built a pedestrian bridge and a bike bridge and in Dallas, those can take decades to get off the ground just ask the Mockingbird bridge about timelines...
“Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell”
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Re: Margaret Hunt Hill bridge by Santiago Calatrava
Just a summary for those who are foreign to the history of the I-30 bridge
Previously proposed design
vs what we had to settle for due to time, lack of funds, and public safety concerns:
Previously proposed design
vs what we had to settle for due to time, lack of funds, and public safety concerns:
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“Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell”
- dukemeredith
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Re: Margaret Hunt Hill bridge by Santiago Calatrava
My only complaint with the McDermott bridge, aesthetically, is that the cables should be thicker. From a distance, they're invisible.
Re: Margaret Hunt Hill bridge by Santiago Calatrava
I may be in the minority here, but I think the four arches may have been a bit too busy. I kinda like the two arches instead. The fact that it's a 'fake' bridge is a downside, but I pretty sure a vast majority of folks who see it don't even realize that. With all things considered, seems like a smarter use of funds.
"He doesn't know how to use the three seashells..."
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Re: Margaret Hunt Hill bridge by Santiago Calatrava
We could have more bridge for our money if we didn't pay for a name just to slap his brand on it. Still could have been a signature design but not by a star architect.
“Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell”
Re: Margaret Hunt Hill bridge by Santiago Calatrava
cowboyeagle05 wrote:We could have more bridge for our money if we didn't pay for a name just to slap his brand on it. Still could have been a signature design but not by a star architect.
So true, but how would we know if we should like the design?
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Re: Margaret Hunt Hill bridge by Santiago Calatrava
Tucy wrote:cowboyeagle05 wrote:We could have more bridge for our money if we didn't pay for a name just to slap his brand on it. Still could have been a signature design but not by a star architect.
So true, but how would we know if we should like the design?
Maybe we can contact Facebook to add a real-life LIKE button for bridge users to "vote" on its palpable wonderous design.
“Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell”
Re: Margaret Hunt Hill bridge by Santiago Calatrava
cowboyeagle05 wrote:Tucy wrote:cowboyeagle05 wrote:We could have more bridge for our money if we didn't pay for a name just to slap his brand on it. Still could have been a signature design but not by a star architect.
So true, but how would we know if we should like the design?
Maybe we can contact Facebook to add a real-life LIKE button for bridge users to "vote" on its palpable wonderous design.
But we Dallasites won't know how to vote without having the imprimatur of a starchitect.