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On a short holiday break I took the overnight coach north of the border to Glasgow, city of culture and the arts. I resolved to find out more about one of its citizens, forgotten for half a century and now the subject of almost a mania of affection (and also some derision), with a revival of his furniture designs, jewellery, stained glass and architectural ideas. Whilst in that area I also took in some of its other delights, finding the inhabitants most welcoming and hospitable - and speaking in a quaint and attractive variation of my mother tongue so that temporarily we were mutually misunderstood in our discourse in the same language! Among the sights to be seen and experienced were: Glasgow Cathedral (Church of Scotland), where I attended Sunday Morning Prayer, finding to my pleasure that the liturgy was unchanged from the Book of Common Prayer. I noted that the welcoming ushers were dressed formally in frock coats, the clergy wore academic robes with their cowls and the whole service, packed with worshippers was in the traditional mode. There was an organ recital after the ceremony and tea and biscuits in the lower nave, where I marvelled at the modern stained glass windows and the grandeur of the building. The Burrell Collection. A vast collection of art treasures given by a successful shipping magnate, Sir William Burrell. It is housed in a wonderful modern building inside Pollok Country Park, difficult of access because of the current Foot-and-Mouth Disease restrictions. Inside the concourse I also took in a further exhibition of Egyptian Artefacts collected by the explorer and archaeologist Petrie. I wonder who that old man was, kneeling down among the children to do rubbings of hieroglyphs from the stonework? Further to my surprise the guided tour was delayed for 10 minutes so that visitors could enjoy a display of belly dancing in the courtyard! George Square, a main attraction approached from the celebrated Sauchiehall Street. This wide and handsome plaza, dominated by civic buildings, was home to statues in honour of heroes, statesmen, poets, inventors and engineers who had their historical roots in the city. The Museum of Sacred Art. Inside were displays of religious art with commentaries (rather superficial) on comparative religion. It is particularly noteworthy as housing that superlative painting of Christ on the Cross by Salvador Dali. Although the upper viewing gallery was closed, the custodian kindly unlocked it for my access in order that the painting be seen in the most advantageous viewpoint. Also there was a magnificent painting of the 99 attributes of God, according to Islam.
Charles Rennie Mackintosh (now often referred to locally as 'CRM') was born in Glasgow in 1868. He studied art and architecture and joined the practice of Honeyman and Keppie as a draughtsman. In his Art Classes he did so well in the examinations and projects that he was given a free studentship. He won prizes and at the age of 21 was awarded the Alexander Thomson (another great architect) Travelling Scholarship. He was a popular, energetic and innovative designer, teaming up with two sisters - Frances and Margaret Macdonald, and also a colleague, Herbert McNair. They were very close in technique, form and decorative design aspects. He married Margaret, and in my opinion the ornamentation and graphic art-forms subsequently produced, including the stained glass, owed more to her influence than that of CRM. Mackintosh's style evolved in stages, the sources being initially a Scottish Baronial style with decorative effects owing much to art nouveau. There are traces of Symbolism, Art Deco and an early introduction to what became 'modernism'. I have noticed that Mackintosh took very little of the principles of architecture propounded by Vitruvius, evolving his own individual style of building. Furthermore he seemed to ignore the Greek Golden Section (with ratio 1:1.618) and the Fibonacci number series in his designs. Instead he found appealing the Celtic (Pictish) ideas on proportion as referred to by that other great Scotsman George Bain (the analyser of Celtic knotwork patterns).
For motifs, he and Margaret Macdonald Mackintosh preferred the tulip, the seed, the rose, the heart and the six-tile grid. They used these to decorate furniture, hangings, glasswork and buildings. At times he must have been difficult to work with, being bitterly disappointed over lack of recognition. It is recorded that for some long time he and one of his partners did not speak to one another. It is also inferred that when times were hard and the partnership dissolved he took to drinking excessively. Eventually he died of cancer of the tongue in 1928. He was aged 60. The Mackintosh legacy in Glasgow is extensive: Glasgow School of Art, in Renfrew Street, where I took a booked guided-tour by a volunteer art student who was very informative and enthusiastic. Designed from the inside-outwards by Mackintosh it is a splendid structure with varied atmospheric conditions according to the use of the room. Thus the widely-known library looks like a clearing in a forest, it is sombre and conducive to quiet study. I saw a young man working a computer in the corner and could not resist the quip that 'perhaps it was a Mackintosh?' It wasn't! At the top of a dark staircase reminiscent of a castle dungeon one is suddenly confronted with a light and airy viewing stage where panoramic drawing of the city could be done. Next there was the exciting glass-sided corridor 'the Hen Run', with student connexions! The Willow Tea Rooms, in Sauchiehall Street (the name 'Sauchiehall' means Willow Alley), designed by CRM under the authority of his wealthy patron and proprietress Miss Cranston. This has now a Jewellery Shop at the entrance - CRM designs of course! House for an Art Lover. Bellahouston Park. In 1901 he entered an international competition for a 'Haus eines Kunst-freundes'. His entry was disqualified as he had not submitted the requisite number of drawings, but the judges praised his work of its 'distinctive colouring, impressive design and cohesiveness of inner and outer construction' - and awarded him a special prize of 600 marks. To these designs the House was constructed within the last 10 years. When in the music room on my tour I played the Mackintosh designed piano with permission and panache - but not with enough competence or artistic expression! The Mackintosh House. Charles Rennie Mackintosh and Margaret Macdonald were married in 1900 and in their home they created imaginative interiors together, with distinctive colour schemes of white, grey, pink and purple. The inventive, sculptural furniture designs symbolised yin-yang, masculine-feminine, art-domesticity and other symbolic dichotomies. The interiors were carefully reconstructed in the Hunterian Art Gallery at Glasgow University, for public inspection and wonderment. and many others, including Queens Cross Church, The Hill House, the Martyrs School, the Daily Record Building and the school in Scotland Street.
CRM - a creative genius to be studied and learned from, who (as Newton also remarked), stood on the shoulders of giants - but nevertheless stands out as a unique example of talent, flair and a model for later generations. Rod Dawson |
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page last updated 1 JUNE 2001 |
