Blackhall Place Bridge
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The surrounding environment is in a disgraceful condition…..look at house where James Joyces short story the Dead is set. This was supposed to get a make over by Heritage Properties a couple of years ago. Look at the condition of the other Georgian buildings …..one is used as a mechanics garage ……(only in Ireland I suppose)
Its a cityscape on a Haussmann scale! And you can just make out those more recent des res’s on either side of Blackhall Place.
Still I suppose the bridge will act as a catalyst to improvements in the area.Aye……….but the ‘Des Res’ that are already there are not of a high design standard……morelike cannon fodder…….. aka infill………aka throw up any old shit but cram as much cramped appartments into a space and give it a fancy name like Viking Harbour or Clipper Court………..as in where are An Taisce and the Green Party to complain when it really matters most…….(they only focus on high profile schemes for publicity…….aka shallow people)
The photomontage from Blackhall place is a bit deceptive
The built arches are quite significantly heavier in realitycan’t wait to see the built version of the bridge… it is after all a big change from existing bridges on the liffey, i.e. a tied arch with its structure above road level… but considering the backdrop i suppose it is good to have something ‘lift’ the area.
i presume as with all this bridges it has been painted white… will be interesting to see how long it takes to turn black from all the traffic on the quays !!
getting back for a moment to similar bridges, this bridge by calatrava have a very similar concept to the macken st bridge…
http://www.construir.com/Econsult/Construr/Nro63/document/puente.htm
You should read back on some of the previous posts brunel…its the same bridge! Quite amusing really. I wonder how much Calatrava was paid for the commission? Would it have been as much if the city council were aware the Macken bridge is a copy. Maybe they were….?
Also wouldnt it be interestiing to see a comparison of the costs of each construction…we’ll have to wait until our one goes the standard 50% over cost of course.
Hmmm surely I am too young to be so cynical
Well the photographs of the two bridge models and surroundings on Calatrava’s site are EXACTLY the same – hence there was obviously an error on the part of the web administrator.
I agree totally that the concepts are indeed similar, however the two spans are much different, around 120 m for Macken and over half this for the Spanish version, hence the two bridges will inevitably be different.
The proposal for Macken St, i.e. a 120m span cable stay bridge swivelling about it base is very complex, and I am sure that the cost of such an arrangement will prove to be relatively high… lets hope the Corpo can afford it !!
It should be noted however that the link I gave was actually to a bridge that has been built in Argentina !! however the possibilities for different bridge forms is somewhat limited, hence it is inevitable that certain design concepts will be used again. This does not detract from the bridge, as long the bridge is suited to its location.
A look at the link below illustrates the more ‘flamboyant’ cable stay bridges built recently… and shows that the number of possibilities is limited…
http://www.launidad.org.mx/galeria.htm
Note the above link has quite a few images so may take a little while to load !!
I could be wrong but… didn’t Calatrava say on one of his visits over here that the Harp on the back of one of our coins helped to ‘inspire’ his design of the Macken St. bridge.
Maybe he was half telling the truth – the harp inspired him to pick theat particular standard type of bridge from his portfolio?!There is a Calatrava bridge in Buenos Aires that looks a LOT like the Macken street. There are a few small differences….
ok, not as similar as I first thought, it is a swinging bridge, except that the pylon is straight instead of curved. Look for Puerto Madero footbridge.
I recall Calatrava losing a significant international competition and one of the judges saying that he was now involved in ‘design by numbers’. I think there is a significant element of that with his work, even though I do still think both bridges will be very attractive.
I also think it’s very questionable the fact that Dublin City Council commissioned him to do two bridges, rather than have a competition. Like with anything, I think direct commissions are an excuse for laziness because you’ve no reason to stretch yourself, when you’ve already got the job.Well the corpo have to be complemented for going for something different for Dublin (i.e. different from the existing)… however just because calatrava is ‘famous’ does not necessarily guarantee original and signature bridges… and as we have seen the two bridges for Dublin with not be signatures in the way the Alamillo bridge is for Seville. it is worth noting that when he received this commission that he only had one bridge of note, Bac le Roda in Barcelona, built so the commissioners went out on somewhat of a limb.
A design competition probably would have been better and given local and lesser known designers a chance.
Still i thought the idea of the harp was pretty cool… pity is isn’t unique to Dublin…
Calatrava is a good guy……..his designs are quite beautiful ….even if they have become formulaic……but in years to come we will be able to boast that we have two Calatrava bridges in Dublin. We cannot do that now regarding notable architects/engineers of the past…..well bar the odd one or two. Would’nt it be great if we could boast today that we had an Isambard Kingdom Brunel bridge spanning the Shannon………….and a Charles Rennie Macintosh……and a Corbusier….and a Mies Van der Rohe…….etc, etc……..it’s what makes cities of note.
I don’t think that just by having a work by a famed architect (in this case Calatrava), it necessarily puts the city on the map.
I think you actually have to have a signature work and an original for it to be of any great worth.
In future years, when Calatrava’s great buildings are featured and discussed, it will be the bridges in Seville and Bilbao, the railway station in Lyon, the opera house and so on that will be mentioned, not the two bridges in Dublin.
For example, I think the Spire will be a genuine landmark as would Libeskind’s plans for Dun Laoghaire, if built. They are originals, which are designed with their location in mind and not just expediency.is it just me or does the location of this bridge make absolutley no sense at all.
I could at a stretch understand if it was in the location where Mellowes bridge is, with Queens Street and Bridgefoot Street leading onto it, but it strikes me as being at odds with the T junction with Ushers Island.
Its primary function, which appears to change frequently, will be to facilitate the buses, (37, 39) that go up Manor Street, which currently go up to the next bridge to turn.
It will also serve to disperse traffic bound for the Chapelizod bypass better, or so say Dublin City Council.Does anyone know if the scaffolding has come off it yet? I’m too lazy to go and see if it’s still just a building site.
Very visible now okay, was passing it last week one night sans camera. I’ll call down to it tomorrow morning.
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