Aesthetics and construction in long-span bridge design

The paper discusses ways in which construction methods influence the aesthetic design of long-span bridges. This interaction has been examined in the cases of several recent bridges in Japan and the UK with the aim of discerning characteristic policies in the two regions for this aspect of design. It is concluded that more aesthetic space is given to features concerned with the process of making in the case of Japanese bridges. Sources of this difference are traced both to the respective organization of the design and construction industries and to cultural factors. Suggestions are made toward giving design choices a firmer philosophical basis by including construction considerations more fully as an element of aesthetic choice in the design process.