Client: 4Culture

Overview

This monumental work reuses existing gears from the original bascule bridge over the Duwamish River, recycling them into the new replacement bridge railing and illuminated gateway pillars. Grygutis worked with the community to determine the most impactful locations for the artwork and learned that honoring the historic nature of the old bridge was important to the locals. The railing and gateway features highlight the beauty inherent in the engineering of the 1930s bascule arm bridges, daylighting the mechanisms which moved the historic bridge.

Goals

The culmination of my work as lead artist, with extensive design team and community collaboration, was showcased at the completion of the new South Park Bridge in Seattle, Washington. To create the artwork for the iconic gateway bridge, I chose to up-cycle the original historic bridge parts into a 2000 foot long art railing and majestic, lighted rocker-arm gateway features inspired by local community meeting input. The success of this project is thanks to close collaboration with HNTB’s Engineering, Architecture, and Design Departments.

Additional Information

Materials: Re-purposed components from original 1931 South Park Bridge, powder-coated steel. Dimensions: 4’H x 3,500’L x 6”D (railing), 25’H (gateway entry features)