Glasgow Part 1

7th Sep
Today we headed off to Glasgow by train, suffering from the still very muggy weather. The Haymarket train station was an easy 5 minute walk from the B&B, followed by a quick 45 minute train journey, so we got to our Glasgow hotel in an hour. The Apex Hotel is almost brand new, and gives all its guests a rubber duck - shame we don't have a bath to use it in!

Kelvingrove Park - credit: S

We decided to go to the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, about 30 minutes walk away. We took advantage of the Kelvingrove Park to get some shade under the trees, giving us some more squirrel spotting opportunities. They are very active at this time of year, busily burying acorns - except for the one we were watching who failed to find a satisfactory hiding place after a dozen attempts of scratching in the soil under the oak trees. Great views of the gothic University buildings too.

The museum was disappointing. It is obviously lacking in funds for upkeep. Interactive exhibits were broken or missing and signs hadn't been updated to reflect obviously changed display items. Having said that, the exhibit on the Glasgow Style was worthwhile. The Glasgow Style was the local interpretation of continental Art Nouveau by people such as Charles Rennie Mackintosh. As an avid CRM fan, this was my first taste of his and his wife's work: furniture, clocks, and decorative panels.

Hanging Heads - credit:J

The main halls of the building were vast cavernous spaces filled with a variety of eclectic objects from elephants to spitfires, but we were rather taken by the Hanging Heads by Sophie Cave.

The Art Gallery had a great display of the Glasgow Boys work - a group of artists from the late 19th century who developed their own style, rebelling from the conservatives in the Royal Scottish Academy. It's a form of Impressionism, but different to that of the French artists.

Afternoon tea was welcome break before heading back to the hotel for a rest. We then invited our Wellington friends George and Megan over for a drink. They arrived in Glasgow on the 6th. It was great to catch up over a drink, then steak pie and mash at a nearby pub. Jeremy decided he wanted a chicken tikka masala, given it was invented in Glasgow, and it duly arrived accompanied by a pile of chips. Only in Scotland!

8th Sep

We awoke to pouring rain, but at least it banished the humidity and it was back to woolly clothes with a huge drop in temperature. The hotel only serves a basic continental breakfast, and it was actually nice not to start the day with stuffing ourselves to overflowing!

Due to our differing interests, Jeremy and I went our different ways in the morning. I took the subway from Cowcaddens to Hillhead by the university to visit the Mackintosh House at the Hunterian Art Gallery. The Cowcaddens station freaked me a little as the platform is narrow with trains on both sides. I like to stand well back from the platform edge in tube stations, but that just wasn't possible!

The Parlour - Credit: University of Glasgow

The Mackintosh House is a purpose built gallery, constructed to house the interiors of CRM's home, saved when the building was demolished in the 1960's. Charles and his wife extensively remodelled their Victorian terrace house in 1906, furnishing it with their own designed furniture, panels, light fittings and textiles. Four rooms have been reassembled as close as possible to the original: hall, dining room, parlour/study and main bedroom. The style is a glorious mix of simplified Art Nouveau, Arts and Crafts with some Art Deco thrown in (CRM's designs were a pre-cursor to some of the later Deco styles). Photos not allowed, so have downloaded a couple.

Dining room - Credit: Hunterian

The subway took me back to the Glasgow School of Art, designed by CRM when he was only a junior architect in a local firm. The design was entered anonymously into the design competition in 1890s, the anonymity perhaps explaining why a junior architect won. Unfortunately the building was significantly damaged by fire in 2014, so is currently covered in hoardings and scaffolding. Given the Willow Tea Rooms (has a CRM interior) is also boarded up for renovation, I need to come back in a couple of years to see what I've missed! I was still able to do a tour, based in the new School of Art building (opened 3 months before the other one burned). There are some beautifully detailed models that enabled the tour guide to discuss the history and feature of the original CRM building. The library was a real masterpiece and was completely destroyed in the fire. It will be recreated exactly, but it won't be quite the same - such a tragedy. The tour included viewing the GSA's collection of original CRM furniture, including an original of the famous Willow chair (designed for the Willow Tea rooms).

River Clyde - credit: J

Jeremy wandered the Clyde riverbank, past the woodlouse-like convention centre to the more spectacular Transport Museum building (which he didn't photograph due to the pouring rain). Seems like the inside of the museum didn't match the outside, but at least it was free!

Jeremy and I meet up for lunch (at a delightful placed named Laboratorio Espresso that did excellent coffee) and a walk down to The Lighthouse. This houses the Centre of Design and Architecture and is built into the old Glasgow Herald building designed by the firm CRM worked for (some say designed by him) and built in 1895. It has a viewing tower that provides pleasing views over the city rooftops. It also had yet another CRM display, with reproduction furniture and more models.

View from the Lighthouse - credit:S

Another brief respite at the hotel to rest weary feet, and it was off to the Marsala Twist Indian restaurant. Jeremy of course couldn't resist the camel curry, which had more than a passing resemblance to tough beef!