OMA create ‘anti iconic design’ to link communities & establish new public space

The Simone Veil Bridge designed by Tenderstream member OMA has opened in Bordeaux, France, providing a new public space for the city. Consisting of a platform stretched across the River Garonne, the design prioritises a commitment to performance and an interest in future use by the people of Bordeaux. Cars, modes of public transportation, and bicycles all have their own lanes, with the largest by far dedicated to pedestrians. The width of the bridge’s platform creates 28m of neutral, unprogrammed space that can be used for cultural or commercial purposes. 

Bridges are often evaluated in terms of their technical utility and their function as tools for the expansion of the city and its periphery, largely driven by cars. The design by OMA opposes the idea of bridges as feats of engineering or aesthetic statements and recovers their urban character as open spaces where events can happen, creating an alternative definition of what a twenty-first-century bridge can be. Rem Koolhaas, OMA partner, stated: “This bridge is for the people, not for connoisseurs. Rather than concentrating on form, the project focuses on performance. Instead of spending its budget on structural gymnastics, it doubles the width with a public space to serve and connect the two adjoining communities that so far have not developed a strong identity.”

The new bridge establishes a linked identity for the areas on either side of the river, connecting the Floirac development on the right bank, where sculptural and functional objects are arranged to provide public amenities, with Bordeaux and Bègles on the left bank through green space that is woven into the urban fabric. Its points of reference are bridges that are places not only for circulation but for activities - including Venice’s Rialto Bridge and incarnations of Galata Bridge across the Golden Horn in Istanbul. Chris van Duijn, OMA partner, explained: “Our design for the Simone Veil Bridge is like a stage but without the theatre. In an era of icons and landmarks, it is very special that the city of Bordeaux decided to build this anti-iconic design.”

Lucy Nordberg
Tenderstream Head of Research

This tender was first published by Tenderstream on 24.02.19 here

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