What is the most attractive bridge over the Liffey?
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This poll is fast approaching the 1006-1015 credibility stakes – though yes, it doesn’t factor in traditional socio-economic elements etc, but perhaps that’s a good thing for once.
Hi
Admitting from the start to be a quasi ignorant when it comes to traditional identity, dare I opt for Mr. Santiago’s James Joyce as the nearest to what Dublin comes to these days.
For a bit of entertainment let’s only imagine what would’ve been if instead of him Daniel Libeskind was the bridge competition winner!!! (was there any competition at all for it?)
I suppose – as if you talk about cars and other sort of more actual gear – it’s a matter of asking which is the sexiest contemporary bridge or classic one. Different things, matter of personal taste, tricky answer 😉
I totally agree can you imagine trying to merge an aston martin and the latest Ferrari you’d probably end up with a kia
Always a traditionalist i was ready to vote Queen Meave but on my trip up to the capital last monday I came across the new James Joyce bridge on my way to Blackhall. What a wonderful addition to the river and the city. Well done!
People seem to really like the Ha’penny Bridge!! Nearly a hundred people think the Heuston Bridge is the most attractive over the Liffey.
Interesting to note the vast difference between O’Donovan Rossa and Queen Maeve, considering they’d appeal to the same people by and large.
Agreed about James Joyce Eugen C. – and as was pointed out by ctesiphon on another thread, is as dangerous as hell when wet – nearly split myself to on it too, much to the delight of motorists sitting at the lights 😮
Enough to make me despise it even more so, only now for life.Sorry, I just discovered this thread 🙂
Difficult to describe how I would light the bridges with a blanket answer, as I think each one has to be taken individually, highlighting the relavent structural features, and bringing out the individuality of each bridge. I certainly would would light them without tacking visiblle floods all over them for starters. I’dlike to see more made of the potential for highlight and contrast made between the structural underside of the brodges and the facade (sorry, not up on bridge terminology, do bridges have facades?) Also, I’d be keen to use the reflective properties of the river itself to bounce light back up onto the underside of the bridges in a contrasting colour to the general lighting of the underside. As for a colour pallette, again, although there has to be a certain uniformaty, shades and positioning can be altered to suit the individual properties, but I would certainly shy away from the “Hey this is Ireland, lets just whack a green flood under all the bridges, regardless of whether it suits them or not” Architecturallt the bridges are different, why not light them differently?
Well if it’s not going to be green Plug, then it has to be blue – end of story. After all there is no other colour when it comes to lighting bridges except blue – as I’m sure you know 😀
Thanks for that – yes the contrast with facades and the undersides of arches on bridges always works very well. Even with the current contrast, in spite of it being green, you can see the potential.
There is a degree of that reflective movement of the water you describe on O’Connell Bridge at the moment – very calming 🙂
It might look spectacular if more pronounced alright.The biggest hurdle to get over it seems is not the lighting design itself, but the longevity of bulbs – they’re never replaced in this country, and when they are it’s often done incorrectly.
So especially considering the awkward positioning of the lamps (i.e. only accessible via a boat :)), we’d need bulbs that last for as long as possible, and a dedicated scheme in place for maintenance.The term LED springs to mind…
I was thinking they could introduce bulb replacement as a kind of added hurdle for that annual canoe race down the liffey !
Seriously tho’ in an ideal world bulbd should be replaced before they blow, it’s pretty easy to work out the life expectancy, so why not put in place a scheduled bulb replacement for any and all difficult to access bulbs, 2 blokes, one boat, one day, do the whole lot in one go,
(yes, I know I’m dreaming, but it reality they’re no harder to replace than the lamps in high level motorway lighting, just a different problem, I’m sure there’s a couple of lads in the corpo that’d love the idea of spending the day bobbing about on the Liffey!)
I kind of shyed away from mentioning the obvious advantages of LEDs (life expectancy/power consumption etc etc) as as soon as you mention LED’s some people tend to automatically assume they’re going to be changing colour! (cue “outraged cries of “you want to turn the river into a disco!!!”) although having the ability to alter rhe colours for specific days a la the empire state building is an interesting option. They would be perfect for saturated colours, but the colour of the white light outpout from white LED’s isn’t really ideal for lighting stonework, and due to the RGB nature of colour mixing LED’s they don’t do tints or shades of colour very ewll.
Another option that would work well on some of the bridges would be edge lighting with side glow figre optic cable, you can stick your light source somewhere easy to access.
and it’s gotta be blue with deep amber ripples 😀
🙂
Ah, I wondered if that replace-before-they-blow method was a practice used. Was watching a pair of workmen working their way around Penney’s on O’Connell St replacing all the florescent uplighters, even though the vast majority were working.
So that’s what they were at!
An efficient practice – as long as the bulbs are recycled of course.Pity about the poor white light from LEDs, as it tends to be the most effective colour for lighting stone or in providing a good base for other colours to work off.
ooohhh good for pennys, it actually makes my skin crawl when I see a row of fluorescent uplighters/cove lighting where one or two bulbs in the string have blown and not replaced, and don’t get me started on when I see one thats been replaced with a tube of a different colour temperature ! 😀
Unfortunately it’s back to a colour temp issue with using white LED’s on stonework, it obviously depends on the colour of the stone, but it generally (in my opinion) stonework benefits from warmer whites and softer tones, white LED’s tend to be a bit harsh and unforgiving.
Ah you’re confusing us now Plug – we’re only moving on from sodium orange here – have yet to grasp the notion of a white bulb, let alone various shades of the colour 🙂
Oh yes, is there anything worse than a flourescent gone in a row – esp in clothes shops that use them a lot above cornicing etc, or a nice warm stretch of them with an ‘ice white’ replacement chucked in the middle 😮
Shows how much interest I take in clothes – light fittings and suspended ceilings are so much more worthy of one’s attention 🙂Unfortunately a lot of the (LED?) orange strips that light the balustrading on the bridges at the moment aren’t working, whatever about the spots that light the keystones.
Indeed lets just take a look now – it’s approaching 1.00am, high summer, lots of tourists about – surely the Liffey must be putting on it’s best show with bridges resplendent in flattering light?
…or maybe not.
shame, isn’t it ?
coming from a theatrical background I have the somewhat high and mighty opinion that lighting is, be it internal or external, an art form.
Used at it’s best it should highlight the beauty and detail of a structure, taking full advantage of the contrast between light and darkness afforded by the night.
In my opinion there’s mouch more to it than just lighting it up so people can see it, New aspects of any structure should come alive after dark. A beautiful example I saw recently was in the “style” section of this weeks Sunday Times (Graham, ask your wife/partner where she left it) It’s a pic of the front of the V&A Museum at night, no front facade lighting at all, but every archay and window is lit. It really looks stunning and gives the building a majesty completely different to the one it has during the day.
It was where it always is – on the bathroom radiator shelf 😮 😀
Fully agreed – I love schemes like this on elaborate buildings that give it a totally new lease of life after dark – in many ways reflecting the architect’s intention to create something fantastical.
It’s a treatment I generally do not like to see applied to sober classical set-pieces, but Victorian and Edwardian architecture was just made for this sort of ‘highlighting’ lighting scheme, with all of their nooks, crannies and high-relief features.If the Calatrava bridge were included I wonder would the result be any different?
The one that was built (James Joyce Bridge)?
Or are you talking about the Sam Beckett (Macken Street) which shouldn’t be included IMO as it’s not in place yet (never ever judge by renders)
Heuston Bridge is cute.
Frank Sherwin bridge is a plain Jane, although the curved arches beneath are attractive.
Rory O’ More Bridge is painted up nicely.
All the the stone bridges are attractive over the Liffey.
Ha’penny Bridge for me!
O’Connell Bridge needs a makeover.
Butt Bridge ain’t bad, now that they ‘ve painted it and removed the adverts.
Matt Talbot bridge is plain, pure function, no money in the country then I suppose.
Calatrava’s second addition (Samuel Beckett bridge) when built will be a show stealer!
The East link which is not mentioned is horrible!
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