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Article from issue 12/2008 »Urban Space and Landscape«

Footbridge in Kew Gardens, London

documentation p. 1412 - 1415
Architect John Pawson | Structural Engineer Buro Happold |

Drafts
1:15000 Site plan
1:20 Horizontal section
1:20 Vertical section
1:500 Elevation
1:500 View from above

The Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew in south-west London are the home of the largest collection of plant species in the world. The gardens, which have been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2003, are the oldest of their kind. They were created nearly 250 years ago from a number of smaller gardens, all of which were in the possession of the royal family. In the course of time, the different areas grew together to form a single large park designed by various landscape architects. The gardens flourished under King George III, who was known by the people as “Farmer George”. In the early 19th century, he had plants collected from all over of the world and brought here.
The fame of the park is also based on the greenhouses that were erected in Victorian times. These have now been complemented by a further structure: The Sackler Crossing, named after Mortimer and Theresa Sackler, who financed the construction of the footbridge through their foundation. The bridge spans the larger of the two artificial lakes in the western part of the gardens. From a distance, it is scarcely visible, for the 25 mm slender bronze balustrade posts ensure a sense of transparency; and with their shimmering play of colours, they are also perfectly integrated into the surroundings. Viewed from the shore of the lake, however, the balustrade of this sinuously curving bridge appears as a continuous, closed wall because of the visual overlapping of the bronze sections.
A further attraction are the reflections cast by these members in the rippled surface of the water. Raised only a small distance above the surface of the lake, the walkway describes a sine curve when viewed from above, snaking its way between two islands that are covered with dense vegetation. The double curve affords visitors different perspectives as they cross the lake and creates the feeling that one is walking just above the surface of the water, which is visible through the joints between the dark granite paving strips. Integrated in these members are small LEDs that illuminate the walkway as well as the water in the dark.

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Footbridge in Kew Gardens, London