Civil

 

Leicester Bridge Competition

 

Pedestrian Footbridge

 

In the nineteenth century more than ten percent of the population of Leicester was employed in the hosiery and knitwear industries. The factories/warehouses needed a consistent supply of fresh water and were commonly located alongside the canal/river.

 

The industry has undergone considerable decline and many of the warehouses and factories have been demolished. The waterside is now undergoing regeneration and in recent years has been seen the construction of significant numbers of new family homes.

 

Our response to the context is to develop a footbridge that had a memory of these historic industries. The three dimensional form of our bridge is reminiscent of these historic cloths and garments. The perforation of the bridge structure embraces the language of weaving, knitting, cross stitching and asks questions about both the history of the River Soar and the nature of the activities that once took place.