The Blooming Bridge is located within Waverley Garden in Edinburgh, crossing from north to south to link Princes Street and The Mound. The building serves multiple purposes. On the ground floors, a lively public area offers various spaces, including shelters, a flower market, and workshop rooms. The first floor is a private space accommodating gardeners, providing living and laboratory spaces. At the bridge's end, a library stands as part of the solid concrete foundation family connected to the bridge. The concrete foundations are designed to help the wetland's biodiversity by providing homes for its animal inhabitants.
The very essence of the building is captured in its facade, expressing its dynamic nature. Each space features a specialized envelope according to function, weaving together to form a blooming facade system that spans the entire building. The bridge includes diverse activities. As one walks through the bridge, whether observing or participating, each moment contributes to the vibrant image of the blooming bridge, unfolding across the days and seasons.
Jasmine Yang
Project description
ROOTING - GROUND AND FOUNDATION
If the building is a blooming flower, then the foundation and ground act as the roots to support it...
Landscape Design
Due to the presence of the bridge, Princes Street Gardens are naturally divided into two different landscapes. The eastern part, facing the Royal Scottish Academy and the National Galleries of Scotland, became a natural symbol of the formal moment and was designed as a quadrangle. The area facing the castle to the west is designed as a wild wetland landscape.
Inhabitable Concrete Foundation
The landscape vision of this project is to transform Waverley Garden into a new wetland. Excavating the ground always has some negative effects on the original biodiversity. However, this design carefully considers how animals and buildings can coexist.
The bridge's supporting system relies on concrete columns and pad foundations. Although concrete is not the most environmentally sustainable material, this design re-purposes these concrete elements to provide habitats for various animals. Concrete footings are extended to accommodate living spaces for foxes and rabbits, while the concrete columns can serve as bee posts for bees and include additional homes for squirrels. Furthermore, two or more concrete footings can form small ponds, offering water life habitats and bird resting spots. Consequently, the concrete components help the wetland's biodiversity by providing homes for its animal inhabitants.
GROWING - STRUCTURE AND ENVELOPE
If the foundation is the root, then the structure and the envelope can be seen as a growing process of the blooming bridge...
Elevation
A language of elevation appears. The solid library and the concrete foundation are members of the same family, while the timber bridge belongs to another. Because the east side faces the formal building, the facade uses vertical language to complement the vertical columns of the two buildings adjacent to the bridge; on the other side, the west facade uses horizontal language to reflect the wild landscape.
Perspective Section and 1-50 Facade Model
The laboratory space is divided into two zones: a growing suite with artificial lighting that controls the pace of plant growth and an open lab that serves as the primary workspace for researchers. The grow suite has no natural daylight, but by utilizing the roof of the grow suite as a reflector, natural daylight distributes more evenly and deeply into the open lab. The slant windows on the opposite side can also bring daylight and ensure natural light throughout the day, creating a bright atmosphere for researchers. It also helps reduce the amount of artificial lighting needed in the space, leading to lower energy costs.
1:50 Detail Section with Elevation
FLOWERING - PROGRAMME AND EXPERIENCES
If the structure and envelope represent the growing process, the programme and experiences in spaces can be viewed as the flowering moment...
Interior Visualization
Exterior Visualization
Awards
Skills & Experience
- Rhino 3D
- Adobe Suite
- AutoCAD
- Enscape
- D5 Rendering
- Vray
Jasmine Yang
