23 February 2015

Nine Elms Pimlico Bridge Design Competition entries published

O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay! A gallery of the entries for the Nine Elms Pimlico bridge design competition has been published today, and my, what an entertaining box of delights there is to behold.

As with so many bridge design competitions (see past blog posts ad nauseam), I'm left wondering exactly what motivated some of the entrants to this one. This is a serious competition for a genuinely useful river crossing which appears already to have much of its funding in place. However, quite a number of the entrants seem to have put forward entries which nobody could even contemplate building, gaudy scribbles which could be held up only by a wing, a prayer and the magic of Photoshop. Why would anyone put so much effort into something which clearly will go straight into the discard pile?

Of the more sensible entries, it's interesting to consider the many different ways in which the bridge designs have been depicted, from razor-sharp photomontage through to whimsical artists impressions, even one that depicts a 21st century bridge being used by 19th century Londoners.

With 74 entries on display, it seems foolhardy to attempt any proper consideration of their merits. I reckon there are at most a couple of dozen which have a serious prospect of further consideration by the competition jury panel. And how could anyone top this ultra-quick skewering?

So, with the aim of avoiding all that hard work on my part, what's the reaction on Twitter?

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