Fight to restore great building in vain
ONE of the tragedies of Friday’s fire is that the blaze wiped out the astonishing progress made in restoring Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s masterpiece. The main damage caused by the 2014 fire was to the building’s west wing, constructed in the first decade of the 20th century, which included the iconic library.
Watching the partial destruction of the “Mack” was traumatic for Glaswegians and anybody who had studied at the revered institution, but the positive reaction by the private and public sectors made the multi-million-pound rebuild feasible.
Not only did the Scottish and UK Governments make sizeable contributions, but Hollywood star Brad Pitt and Doctor Who actor Peter Capaldi became trustees of The Mackintosh Appeal.
Progress was tangible. Within six months of the fire, a temporary roof had been completed. By March 2015,
a design team was appointed and design concepts followed months later.
A main contractor was in place in June 2016 and weeks later work had started on site. The project was set to be completed by February next year.
In November, a Getty Images photographer captured the strides that had been made, including specialist carpenters installing the floor to the bookstore above the library.
He also showed traditional lath and plaster being applied in the main studios on the first floor and wood panelling on the ground floor being reinstated.
Although the library was reduced to rubble in the first fire, experts believed the original could be recreated.
David MacDonald of woodworkers Laurence McIntosh, which had a key role in building the prototype, explained to the BBC how meticulous the plans were: “The critical brief was to reconstruct the library as it was handed over in 1910, so everything has to match what was done by the Mackintosh tradesmen, in every aspect from the timber used, the fixings, the nails, the finish, the carvings and the paint effects on the spindles. It has all had to be precisely replicated.”
In June, Scotland Secretary David Mundell visited the Glasgow School of Art and remarked on the transformation: “I was encouraged by the stage of the restoration works at the Mackintosh building. I look forward to seeing it again when fully open.”
However, Friday’s fire will prove to be a hammer blow for the project. With the roof and upper floors destroyed, one of Glasgow’s landmark buildings has been gutted. Disaster has been followed by catastrophe.