HISTORY
A BRIDGE IS A STRUCTURE THAT PROVIDES PASSAGE OVER OBSITCLES
SUCH AS VALLEYS, ROUGH TERRAIN OR BODIES OF WATER. THEY FIRST
CAME ABOUT DURING THE RISE OF MODERN CIVILIZATIONS SUCH AS
MESOPOTAMIA. INITIALLY THEY WERE MADE WITH EASILY ACCISSIBLE
NATURAL RESOURCES (WOODEN LOGS, STONE, DIRT). SINCE THEN WE
HAVE ADVANCED KNOWLEDGE, ENGINEERING AND MANUFACTURING.
THE ANCIENT ROMANS WERE THE ONES TO REVOLUTIONIZE BRIDGE
CONSTRUCTION. THEY BEGAN TO GROUND VOLCANIC ROCK IN ORDER TO
MAKE MORTAR (AN ADHESIVE PASTE). THIS MEANT THAT THEY COULD
NOW HAVE STURDIER AND LARGER STRUCTURES. BRIDGES BEGAN TO
SPREAD ACROSS EUROPE, AFRICA AND ASIA. THE ROMANS WERE ALSO
THE ONES TO MAKE THE DISCOVERY OF ARCHES. THIS MEANT THAT LOAD
FORCES OF THE BRIDGES WERE MOVED ALONG THE ARCH, MEETING WITH
THE GROUND WHERE THEY WERE CANCLED OUT BY THE SUPPORTS THE
END OF THE ARCH. THEY WERE ABLE TO CREATE MUCH LIGHTER WHILE
HOLDING LOADS TWICE AS HEAVY. AFTER THE FALL OF THE ROMAN
EMPIRE, BRIDGE CONSTRUCTION CAME TO A PAUSE. THAT WAS UNTIL
THE 18TH CENTURTY WHEN SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING BECAME
POPULAR. ARCHITECTS WERE USING NEW MATERIALS (CAST IRON). IRON
ENCOURAGED THE CREATION OF THE TRUSS SYSTEM. HOWEVER IRON
WAS UNABLE TO SUPPORT HEAVY LOADS. THIS PROBLEM WAS SOLVED
WITH THE INVENTION OF STEEL.
IN THE UNITED STATES ALONE THERE ARE OVER 600,000 BRIDGES. SOME
OF THE MOST POPULAT INCLUDE:
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THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE- SAN FRAN
THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE- NYC
THE MACKINAC BRIDGE- MICHIGAN
SUNSHINE SKYWAY BRIDGE- FLORIDA
BRIDGES NOT ONLY CONNECT WITHIN STATES, BUT THEY ALSO CONNECT
FROM STATE TO STATE AND COUNTRY TO COUNTRY.
STOP WITH BINOCULARS (PICTURES FOR REFRENCE): IN WHAT ORDER
WOULD YOU SAY THE BRIDGES WERE BUILT?
NEW YORK CITY HISTORY:
BEFORE NYC WAS WHAT WE KNOW IT TO BE TODAY IT WAS EXTREEMLY
UNDERDEVELOPED. AFTER WORLD WAR 2 AND THE GREAT DEPRESSION
THERE WERE MANY EUROPEAN, GERMAN AND IRISH IMMIGRANTS
COMING IN WHICH CHANGED THE FACE OF THE CITY. THEY ESTABLISHED
PERSONAL NEIGHBOURHOODS, BEGAN TO OPEN BUSINESSES, JOIN
POLITICS. IT WAS AT THIS TIME THAT TRACES OF THE MODERN NEW YORK
CITY BEGAN TO FORM. THERE WAS AN ECONOMIC AND BUILDING BOOM
(THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE).
IN 1895 THE CITIES OF MANHATTAN, BROOKLYN, BRONX, QUEENS AND
STATEN ISLAND CONSOLIDATED TO FORM THE 5-BOROUGH “GREATER
NEW YORK.” THE UNIFICATION ENCOURAGED MASS TRANSPORT WHICH,
LED TO THE CREATION OF THE INTER-BOROUGH RAPID TRANSIT (THE
CITY’S FIRST SUBWAY COMPANY) AND THE BUILDING OF THE
WILLIAMSBURG AND MANHATTAN BRIDGES.
FORM-FUNCTION-MATERIALITY:
BRIDGES AID PEDESTRIANS, MOTORISTS, CYCLISTS AND COMMUTERS
EVERYDAY.
THE EVOLUTION OF THE FORM, FUNCTION, MATERIALITY AND AESTHETIC
HAS CHANGED GREATLY SINCE THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE FIRST
BRIDGE.
ENGINEERS HAVE DEVELOPED MULTIPLE STRUCTURES, MADE MOVABLE
BRIDGES AND EVEN DOUBLE-DECKED BRIDGES. THESE DEVELOPMENTS
HAVE BIRTHED THE QUESTIONS:
WHAT GOVERNS THE FORM OF A BRIDGE? DOES FORM FOLLOW FUNCTION
OR DOES FORM FOLLOW FORM?
HOW HAS DESIGN CHANGED THROUGHOUT THE YEARS AND HOW WILL IT
CONTINUE TO EVOLVE?
FORM FOLLOW FUNCTION (1896)
AS DESIGNERS, WHAT DOES THE PHRASE FORM FOLLOWS FUNCTION
MEAN TO YOU?
LOUIS SULLIVAN, AN AMERICAN ARCHITECT KNOWN FOR HIS INFLUENCE
WITH SKYSCRAPERS AND MORDERNISM, COINED THE PHRASE. IT CAME
ABOUT AT A TIME TECHNOLOGY, TASTES AND ECONOMICS WERE
RAPIDLY CHANGING. TOWARD THE END OF THE 19TH CENTURY PEOPLE
WERE RETURNING TO ROMAN DESIGN (THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE). IT
WASN’T UNTIL THE 20TH CENTURY THAT THERE WAS A TRANSITION INTO
MODERNISM (STEEL SKYSCRAPERS) AND STEEL BRIDGES. (MANHATTAN,
WILLIAMSBURGE).
THE FIRST NOTION OF BEAUTY IN A BRIDGE IS THAT IT PERFORMS ITS
FUNCTION EFFICIENTLY AND THAT THERE IS USER SATISFACTION.
IS IT POSSIBLE TO DESIGN INTERACTIVE PIECES WITHOUT
FUNCTIONALITY IN MIND?
A BRIDGE CAN FULFILL ITS REQUIREMENTS OF AESTHETIC, ECONOMY
AND CONSTRUCTABILITY BUT IF IT IS UNABLE TO PERFORM ITS
FUNCTION, IT WONT BE APPEALING.
THIS DOES NOT MEAN THAT ORNEMENTATION IS NOT ALLOWED; IT MUST
HOWEVER SERVE A FUNCTION.
FORM FOLLOWS MATERIALITY:
WHEN PLANNING YOUR OWN PROJECTS DO YOU THINK OF THE
MATERIALS AS AN AFTERTHOUGHT OR IS IT ONE OF YOUR MAIN
DECISIONS?
BRIDGES CAN BE CATEGORIZED BY THERE MATERIALITY.
IN THE 18TH CENTURY STONE AND TIMBER WERE PREDOMINANTLY
USED. MODERN BRIDGES HOWEVER USE CONCRETE, STEEL, STAINLESS
STEEL AND FIBER REIN- FORCED POLYMERS.
THERE ARE MANY FACTORS THAT SHOULD BE THOUGHT ABOUT WHEN
SELECTING A MATERIAL OR A COMBINATION OF MATERIALS. THE TYPE
OF STRUCTURE CAN DICTATE WHAT MATERIALS ARE SELECTED.
IT IS ALSO IMPORTANT TO THINK ABOUT MATERIALS IN RELATION TO THE
BRIDGES SURROUNDINGS AND ENVIRONMENTS. IT IS IMPORTANT TO
CHOOSE THE RIGHT MATERIALS THAT CAN WITHSTAND THE
WEATHERING AND ENVIRONMENT THAT IT IS GOING TO BE PLACED IN.
PROPORTION: PROPORTION IS KEY TO ACHIEVING AN AESTHETICALLY
PLEASING STRUCTURE. PROPORTION OF PIERS AND GIRDERS ARE ALSO
IMPORTANT. PIERS CAN BE THING COMPARED TO THE GIRDERS.
HARMONY: THE PARTS OF THE STRUCTURE MYST BE IN AGREEMENT
WITH EACHOTHER AND THE WHOLE STRUCTURE MST BE IN AGREEMENT
WITH ITS SURROUNDINGS. HARMONY ALSO PLAYS WITH PROPORTION.
FOR A BRIDGE TO LOOK HARMONIOUS ITS PARTS MUST BE
PROPORTIONATE. THE SCALE AND SIZE OF A BRIDGE MUST ALSO BE
HARMONIUS TO ITS SURROUNDINGS.
ORDER AND RYTHEM: REPEATINGS SPANS TOO MANY TIMES CAN BE
MONOTINOUS.
CONTRAST AND TEXTURE: THERE MUST BE CONTRAST IN ADDITION TO
HARMONY. SOMETIMES THE STRUCTURE MAY STAND OUT BECAUSE OF
ITS SCALE BUT VISUALLY ITS DESIGN IS HARMONIOUS WITH ITS
ENVIRONMENT. THERE MUST BE CONTRAST IN THE DESIGN ITSELF.
LIGHT AND SHADOW: DESIGNERS MST BE AWARE OF HOW THE SHADOWS
OCCUR IN THE STRUCTURE THROUGHOUT THE DAY.
FORM FOLLOWS FORM:
FORM FOLLOWS FUNCTION IS A PRINCIPLE ASSOCIATED WITH MODERNIST
ARCHITECTURE AND INDUSTRIAL DESIGN.
THE 20TH CENTURY BROUGHT MODERNISM. ADOLF LOOS COINED THE
PHRASE “ORNIMENT IS CRIME”. YOU CAN SEE IT IN THE DIFFERENCE
BETWEEN THE BRIDGE DESIGNS. ORNIMENTATION MAKES THINGS
EXPIRABLE.
LE CORBUSIER TOOK THESE TWO PRINCIPALS AND APPLIED IT TO HIS
DESIGN.
WALTER GROPIUS (FOUDNDER OF BAUHAUS) WAS NOTHER WHO
FOLLOWED THESE TWO PRINCIPALS.
WHAT IS YOUR PERSONAL OPINION ABOUT MODERN DESIGN/SWEEDISH
DESIGN?
IN MODERN BRIDGE DESIGN ENGINEERS HAVE FOUND THAT AESTHETICS
HAS BEEN ADDED TO THE LIST OF PRIORITIES. THE IDEA OF MAKING IT A
PRIORITY HAS SPARKED CONTROVERSY, AS SOME BELIEVE THAT IT
CANNOT BE DONE WITHOUT INFRINGING ON OTHER FACTORS.
ANOTHER MAJOR CONCERN IS THE ECONOMICS, BETWEEN 2%-5% OF A
BUDGET IS THE RECOMMENDED AMOUNT ALLOCATED TOWARDS VISUAL
APPEAL. THESE BRIDGES ARE ADDED VALUE TO CITIES AND COUNTRIES.
THEIR PROPORTION AND SCALE MUST TAKE THEIR SURROUNDINGS INTO
CONSIDERATION. BRIDGES SHOULD NOT STICK OUT LIKE A SOAR THUMB;
THEY SHOULD BE HARMONIOUS IN THEIR DESIGN AND WITH THEIR SUR0ROUNDINGS. THIS HOWEVER DOES NOT MEAN THAT IT SHOULD LACK IN
CONTRAST AND TEXTURE.