GSA Degree Show: Return of the Mack

With ‘the Mack’ now cleared and a design team appointed in March (Page \ Park Architects) after an extensive selection process the long and careful restoration process of the building continues. Page \ Park Architects will establish an external expert advisory panel and the design team has now started work with The Glasgow School of Art to develop a detailed plan for the restoration. Work is expected to start on the Building in spring 2016 with the aspiration that there will be academic access from 2017-18.

We are aware of the global interest in the restoration of the Mackintosh Building and the diversity of opinion that surrounds this. We also recognise our enormous responsibility, both in respect of the building’s historic and civic role and its role as a working building, to bring it back to life as a robust, functioning and inspirational working art school, a role the building has played successfully for more than 100 years, ensuring it is fit for purpose for a 21st century educational institution.

On 23 May 2014, when the extent of the fire loss was known our Chair Muriel Gray stated: “We will rebuild and rebuild well." Moving forward that commitment remains – our ambition is to achieve an exemplary restoration of the Mackintosh Building, using meticulous and detailed conservation, traditional craftsmanship and construction skills combined with technology, design innovation and robust functionality.

Above all our commitment to the restoration must focus on the very highest standards of safety for the GSA’s community while operating as a working art school, visitor attraction and jewel in Glasgow’s architectural heritage. Director Tom Inns neatly summarised our intent thus: “What the eye sees will be Mackintosh. What Mackintosh sees will be 21st century.”
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One of the most fittingly creative responses to the fire came from Lizzie Malcolm, an alumna of the GSA now living and working in the Netherlands. As work begins to restore the parts of the building damaged in the fire, Lizzie talks about the website she developed in response to that day in May – the Mac Photo Archive.

I am sure that on the day of the fire there was an enormous spike in the number of Google image searches and Wikipedia hits for the Mackintosh Building. When I looked online I found the results were almost exclusively images of the building’s exterior. I wanted to provide a more comprehensive representation of the building and its central position within the School, and so began developing a photographic archive – a comprehensive record of the interior of the building from the people who have used it since its completion in 1909.

Using floor plans, users of the Mac Photo Archive can tag their photos with the floor and room in which their photograph was taken and estimate a date of capture. They can also add a description or a memory to the photograph, to elaborate on the circumstances of the image. These texts range from very objective descriptions to more emotional memories, with people appearing eager to share their personal experiences of the building.

The number of contributions to the archive has been very encouraging. I expected some activity from within the GSA community, and indeed, word spread fast to alumni through Facebook and Twitter. Somewhat unexpected was the response from further afield, only confirming the influence that the Building and GSA has in the art, design and architecture communities. There have also been contributions from tourists and visitors from decades past declaring fond memories of their visit to Glasgow.

Another interesting aspect of the archive so far is the range of styles of photographs that have been uploaded. There are many different photographic techniques, from modern SLRs and phone cameras to medium format slides and pinhole cameras. Because many of the contributors are GSA students and alumni, the level of photography is high and certainly varied. There is a deliberate feeling to these images and they go further than just a documentation of Mackintosh's architecture.

The Mac Photo Archive contributors obviously have a strong connection to the building, and their photographs are a record of their time and experiences there, revealing how the building has been used for over 100 years – from paint splattered sinks to degree show parties, studio workspaces and class photos on the front steps.

Although the fire was the catalyst to create the archive, it is not necessarily to be tied to that specific event. By physically and temporally tagging the photos, there are many other options for visualising the information that the archive gathers. The archive is both a tribute to the Mackintosh Building, and an attempt to experiment with new methods of gathering and viewing – particularly historical – information.

Specific to the collection of photographic documentation, the ubiquity of the personal camera means our surroundings are more documented than ever before. We hope the archive can be a simple example of the opportunity the internet provides for collecting this kind of visual documentation from thousands of sources at once, uncovering images that would otherwise remain hidden.

MACK TIMELINE: KEY DATES 

23 May 2014 Fire destroys parts of the Mack
15 Oct 2014 Temporary roof completed
31 Mar 2015 Design team appointed
30 Sep 2015 Design concepts
31 Jan 2016 Planning approvals
1 May 2016 Work starts on site
7 Jun 2018 Possible completion of works