Glasgow School of Art begins long road to return of The Mack

It involved stabilising the world-renowned building, which was designed by famous architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh, and removing tonnes of debris from the fire that devastated it in 2018.

As I toured the site with Eleanor Magennis, director of estates at Glasgow School of Art, the first surprise was how much of the structure remained.

We walked along what was the basement corridor, which without a roof, now offers a view of the floors above.

The charred plaster cast sculptures, rescued from the first fire and now in the neighbouring Reid building, would once have graced the corridor above.

The director’s office, with its secret studio in the roof space above, is gone – just the fireplace remains, gripping the top of the wall.

The front door – where countless students once passed – from Alasdair Gray to John Byrne, Liz Lochhead to Robbie Coltrane – is still visible, the stone porch anyway, and the wrought iron railings and distinctive art nouveau finial.

The exposed brick has not only survived both fires, they have actually been strengthened, leaving solid foundations for the school they hope to rebuild.

Not that it has been a simple task.

Since the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service completed its report this time last year – unable to determine a cause – the work to clear the site has continued.

“It was three metres high in some places and that had to be painstakingly removed – often by hand,” said Ms Magennis.

More than 5,500 tonnes of debris was removed, and in among it, they found little scraps of history.

The steel beams which Mackintosh drew different versions of, to the infuriation of construction workers on site, are now revealed on a studio wall.

“It’s the little glimpses you get of the building you knew and love, the concrete stair with the little cut-outs, the ironwork., the entrance porch with the guardians over the door, all these glimpses of Mackintosh, combined with the drawings we have, show we can bring the building back,” Ms Magennis said.

The plan set out in the school’s Strategic Outline Business Case is for a “faithful reinstatement” of the original building and this marks the end of the first phase of a three-part project.

The next stage is “enabling works” including installing a temporary roof.

Meanwhile, the school’s director Prof Penny Macbeth believes it is an important moment in the return of the Mack.

“The integrity of the building is still there,” she says. “The presence of Mackintosh is still there. There’s a lot to be done but we’re on our way.”

Raising the necessary funds will be a challenge in the current economic climate but she’s confident that it can be done with the support of the wider community.

“They’ve had a really difficult time, and we understand that,” Prof Macbeth says. “We are looking at the wider estate, and the wider community but we’re keen to remember why this building was originally built.

“It was for the industry of Glasgow but it was for the community too. They came here to do night school classes , and they still do.

“Partnership will be at the heart of the rebuild, and we will continue to collaborate with a wide range of people as we work to bring back this remarkable and inspirational building for our students and staff and a major resource for our community and for the city.”