Four Continents Bridge

Hiroshima, Japan, 1989

This commemorative bridge in Hiroshima celebrates the links between people and the natural environment. The form and gesture of SITE’s design is based on the classical tradition of arched Japanese bridges and their connections to landscape. Rather than simply repeat these conventions, this concept integrates new technology with contemporary interpretations of the garden. The surface of the bridge is divided by a glass wall, punctured by three pedestrian crossways and terminated at both ends by lateral glass arches. On one side of the glass wall - spanning the entire length of the walkway - four landscape terrariums contain typical vegetation from the principle geological and climatic quadrants of the earth. On the opposite side of this transparent divider, pedestrians are able to see the layers of earth (with simulations of regional geology) in the form of terrarium gardens. The glass wall also supports a continuous flow of water that clings to the surface and feeds a series of river-like basins. The overflow becomes a waterfall, cascading into the lake below.