| This 500-foot pedestrian bridge, crossing Interstate 705 and the railroad tracks, links downtown Tacoma and the area around Union Station, the Washington State History Museum, and the Tacoma Art Museum with the Museum of Glass and the Thea Foss Waterway. Designed by Chihuly and architect Andersson, it features more than 2000 sculpture by internationally acclaimed studio glass artist Chihuly. Made of concrete and steel, the twenty-foot wide bridge was designed to feature Chihuly's colorful works; thus, sections of the bridge are in blackened stainless steel with a satin finish which is non-reflective. This neutral background stands in stark contrast to the vivid colors of Chihuly's works--vivid even on a rainy and cloudy day like the one when these photographs were taken. |
Distant views of the 3-part bridge looking toward the Museum of GlassThis long bridge is comprised of three parts. See plan. The first part on the downtown side is the Seaform Pavilion. The midpoint has the Crystal Towers, and the last part is the Venetian Wall, a pavilion with individual sculptures. |
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Looking toward the Museum of GlassThe Seaform Pavilion, a kind of open tunnel with a 50 by 20 foot plate glass ceiling, is in the foreground. |
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Looking back to Union StationOnly a bit of the Venetian Wall is visible here. It is a kind of exhibition wall with shelves. See page 2 for additional views. |
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The Seaform Pavilion |
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| The 20 by 50 foot ceiling houses more than 2300 brightly colored glass objects in seaform shapes--cones, roundels, spiralling ribbons. These are suspended above the viewer's head and simulate an underwater experience.
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Click here to return to index of art historical sites.
Click here to see the home page of Bluffton University.
