In pictures: Toronto's new pedestrian bridge, Puente de Luz
Bridge of Light boasts a happy shade of yellow and makes a bold statement for public art
The curved arches and steel tension cables of the newly opened pedestrian bridge, Puente de Luz, that connects the Concord CityPlace condo development to Front Street West in Toronto. The bridge was designed by Chilean sculptor-designer Francisco Gazitua.Della Rollins
In 2009 Concord Adex Developments held a competition to select an artist to work with an engineering and design team for the dramatic new bridge. In Toronto, Mr. Gazitua says he put his sculpture to work outside of its traditional borders.Della Rollins
The bridge spans the busiest railway corridor in Canada – 16 sets of tracks. It will serve thousands of people every day connecting CityPlace neighbourhood to the King West residential and entertainment area to the north. Friday was ribbon-cutting day for the distinctively yellow bridge.Della Rollins
Plans for this bridge stretch back to the 1980s when Canadian National Railway Co. expressed interest in selling the railway land. The city required the new purchaser to agree to a set of community benefits, including bridges and parkland.Della Rollins
Mr. Gazitua came from Chile to help open Puente de Luz on Friday. ‘Sculpture must not only be in museums and this specialist, cloistered world, but must return to the street where it should never have left . . .’Della Rollins