Proposal for a new entrance and 40m-span footbridge over the River Liffey to the Irish National War Memorial Gardens. Together these create a highly-charged sequence of spaces to intensify people’s experience and enjoyment of Lutyens’ commemorative gardens.

The bridge takes the form of a solid granite ring, creating a unique place of reflection and contemplation on the tranquil river that is both introspective and outward looking. While reinforcing Lutyens’ conception of the memorial as a series of episodes set in a calm landscape, the divided route of the Ring of Stone bridge challenges the simplistic axial linearity to raise questions of loss, separation and unity.

Client: The Office of Public Works, Royal Institute of Architects of Ireland (RIAI)

Budget:  €5.2m

Status:  Design competition 2019

Team:  Matter Architecture, Webb Yates Engineers, Churchman Landscape Architects, Jackson Coles, Greengage Environmental