The Texas Society of Architects recently announced the winners for the 2009 TSA Studio Awards and has recognized BRAVE / ARCHITECTURE with an award for the Sorensen Bridge. Eight entries (out of 109) were selected to receive the honor, which were juried by Gisue Hariri (Hariri & Hariri Architecture) and Marc Tsurumaki (Lewis.Tsurumaki.Lewis). Congratulations to Fernando, Christian and Alp, for their contributions to the project!


Sorensen Barn
Where the historical covered bridge protected the structure from the elements—this reinterpretation permits the elements to pass through the structure. Located in the Texas Hill Country, the Sorensen Bridge is the addition of a structure to an existing bridge spanning 50 feet across Sandy Creek. The creek divides 220 acres of private property that belongs to an entrepreneur whose business is selling tube steel.

The project brief called for the transformation of an existing concrete and steel bridge into a covered bridge. We found two factors that informed our solution: First, traditional covered bridges were built to protect the wooden structures from the elements. Second, the creek has flooded over the bridge three times in the last five years. We concluded the most relevant solution would be to create a permeable cover that allows for the incursion of flood waters. The final bridge will be clad in recycled tube steel mounted on a steel skeleton allowing the water to continue passing over and through the bridge during moments of extreme flooding.

Click below to view the award submittal: