Glasgow cast in a new light by project capturing 24 hours of life in the city
“The main thing that surprised me was that I didn’t realise how cosmopolitan Glasgow is now…it has also become a lot more sophisticated”
MARK WAUGH Edinburgh Photographer
A “visual library” of more than 2,000 images has been compiled as part of a project to document modern-day Glasgow over the course of 24 hours.
Late-night revellers, street entertainers, shoppers, subway commuters, stag party revellers, football fans and students have all been given starring roles in the online archive.
Some 50 amateur and professional photographers took part in the “social experiment”, which ran from midnight to midnight on 7 April.
Celebrated landmarks cast in a new light include the Barrowland Ballroom, the People’s Palace, Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Central Station and the King’s Theatre.
But they also headed out into bustling thoroughfares like Buchanan Street. Sauchiehall Street and George Square to capture ordinary Glaswegians and visitors to the city.
Inspired by the Humans of New York blog, which has more than 25 million followers on social media, A Day in the Life of Glasgow was aimed at “capturing the essence of a single day” in the city.
Back alleys, takeaways, underpasses, rooftops. graveyards and shopping malls are all featured in the new online archive, which has been masterminded by award-winning Edinburgh-born photographer, Mark Waugh, who was on the streets of Glasgow for all 24 hours.
Glasgow’s historic former police boxes, the statue of a fireman outside Central Station, graffiti art, an opentop tourist bus and even the pigeons that descend on the city centre were captured as part of the project.
A selection of the photographs will eventually be immortalised in a vast work of art, which will be displayed in a yet-to-be-confirmed city centre location.
Mr Waugh, who joined forces with the company Cartridge Save to create A Day in the Life of Glasgow, said: “Glaswegians are ‘salt of the earth’ sort of people. There are some run characters, without a doubt, but the people are full of colour.
“The main thing that surtor prised me was that I didn’t realise how cosmopolitan Glasgow is now. A lot of international people are in the city and it has also become a lot more sophisticated.
“I didn’t have a real structure to the day and I wasn’t looking for particular things as I wandered around. I was just hoping to see things. I really wanted to observe the day and it was pretty much a free-for-all with the other photographers. They could go where they wanted, when then wanted.
“The nightlife in Glasgow was an obvious thing to try to capture. It was an excuse to see what bizarre things people get up to. There is a great busker who turns up with a music system on a trolley and it is amazing to watch. At first he has a couple of people looking at him as if he is a bit odd, but as soon as one person starts dancing there is a whole disco in the street. Even the boy racers who zoom around Glasgow were stopping to dance.”
Ian Cowley, managing direc- of Cartridge Save, said: “With the help of talented photographers from across the city we’ve captured the fastpaced, ever-changing world around us, ensuring those unique moments are now forever frozen in time providing a unique legacy to the city of Glasgow. The overwhelming amount of interest we had magnifies how much the people of the city appreciate the arts and its culture.”
Glasgow is a place that’s never been backward about coming forward. Scotland’s second city (as residents of Edinburgh are amused to describe it) has a cockiness and a colour that sets it apart from other locations. It has an energy all of its own. So a project to capture a day in the life of Glasgow has produced some fascinating results.
A collective of 50 professional and amateur photographers shot more than 2,000 images of the city on 7 April. During 24 hours, they shot late-night revellers, early morning commuters, football fans and students. The photographers sought out little known side-streets as well as established landmarks to create an expansive document of a city that rarely sleeps. A selection of the photographs will now be combined into a large artwork to be displayed in a yet-to-be revealed location. We’re sure there will be plenty of interest in this project not only from Glaswegians but from those who live further afield.
The good people of Edinburgh, for example, may consider that the best way to experience Glasgow is by looking at photographs rather than actually going to the place.