Bridges Across the Potomac River

As a part of a new seminar in the School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, ARCH478Q/678Q Bridge Design, the students in the course designed an exhibition for the Linear Gallery:  Crossing the Potomac.  This exhibition explores the social, symbolic, and scientific aspects of the bridges crossing the Potomac River in Washington, D.C.  By focusing on a geographically defined set of bridges, and in this case local works, we can better understand the many factors that go into bridge design, as well as the impact that bridges have on our infrastructure, society, and environment.  The diverse backgrounds of the exhibition designers (undergraduate and graduate students in architecture, civil engineering, and landscape architecture) allowed us to look into the evolving relationships between architecture, engineering, and construction as they pertain to our infrastructure.  Comparing the geographical and historical progression of bridge forms shows how designers have made design decisions as well as how the next generation of designers might create successful bridges.