Taichung helped her win the Pritzker Prize—“Danjiang Bridge” designer Zaha Hadid

▲ The design of the Danjiang Bridge was officially unveiled recently. (Photo / Provided by the Directorate General of Highways, Ministry of Transportation and Communications)

Travel Center / Comprehensive Report

The future new landmark of New Taipei City, the “Danjiang Bridge,” has attracted much attention since its recent unveiling. Most people hope the bridge will be completed as planned and not be used merely as an election campaign tool. For architecture fans,this bridge is a creationZaha Hadiddesignedby the world’s first female architect to win the Pritzker Architecture Prize, making it highly meaningful.

▲ Zaha Hadid, the world’s first female architect to win the Pritzker Prize. (Photo / Screenshot from the official Pritzker Prize website)

Zaha Hadid’s designs emphasize fluidity while delivering strong visual impact, earning her the title of a “sensory architect.” She was also ranked as the most influential thinker in Time magazine’s 2010 list of the 100 most influential people. The Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Seoul, South Korea, which opened in 2014, is also one of her representative works.

%际锥?碌乇辍岸?竺派杓乒愠　币彩怯哨aha Hadid设计。(图／取自Dongdaemun Design Plaza fan page)

Zaha Hadid has deep ties with Taiwan, though she narrowly missed out twice. The first was the originally planned “Guggenheim Museum” in Taichung,the design of which earned her the Pritzker Architecture Prize in 2004, making her the first woman—and the youngest recipient—to win the award.However, the museum was ultimately never built.

The second time was the National Taichung Theater. Zaha Hadid also participated in the design competition, but the project was ultimately awarded to Japanese architect Toyo Ito, with Zaha coming in second. Years later, through the design of the “Danjiang Bridge,” she has once again connected with Taiwan, marking her third tie to this world-class architectural master.

▲ Simulation animation of the Danjiang Bridge construction project. (Photo / Screenshot fromdesignboom)

The design of the “Danjiang Bridge” has also drawn international media attention. The renowned foreign architecture website designboom not only provided detailed insights into the bridge’s features but also shared a simulation animation of its construction process.

The main span of the “Danjiang Bridge” is 920 meters long with a 450-meter span. It features a single-tower, asymmetric cable-stayed design, with the cable-stayed section extending approximately 150 meters from the bridge deck to the top of the tower. Upon its expected completion and opening at the end of 2020, it will become the world’s largest single-tower cable-stayed bridge.