Robo-Centipede Bridges the River Shannon

Lisa Katayama — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 16:00:11 PDT

The University of Limerick in Ireland needed to expand across the River Shannon, so they decided to it with this strangely inverted bridge that looks something like a centipede. No, it's not an homage to China Mieville — it's a futuristic five-span bridge designed by Wilkinson Eyre Architects, the guys who are making St. Petersburg into a domed city.

The centipede legs will house modern art displays.

Wilkinson Eyre main page via Dezeen

St. Petersburg Starts Process of Becoming a Domed City

LISA KATAYAMA — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 16:30:03 PST

It's not quite a glass-domed city yet, but St. Petersberg has taken the first steps towards that goal. British architecture firm Wilkinson Eyre, best known for the design of the Gateshead Millenium Bridge in Newcastle, unveiled a bold new plan to revamp the old market of St. Petersburg, Russia by putting it entirely under glass. Over the next few years they'll be putting a giant sheet of reinforced glass over Aprasin Dvor, a shopping district. A matching glass bridge will span the river. We've got some interesting facts about the project.

Here are some deets:
- A glazed crystalline glass tensegrity roof reflects weather conditions but keeps pedestrians dry.
- A new building on the Fontanka River will replace the decaying 60s Publishing House.
- A lightweight tensegrity footbridge will be built over the river. It'll look like a shiny cloud. Images by Wilkinson Eyre

Wilkinson Eyre Architects via Dezeen

io9: wilkinson eyre

Robo-Centipede Bridges the River Shannon

St. Petersburg Starts Process of Becoming a Domed City