Glasgow School of Art

The Glasgow School of Art

Type	Independent Art school. University-level institution
Established	1845
Academic staff	160
Administrative staff	138
Students	1,840 (2014/15)[1]
Undergraduates	1,385 (2014/15)[1]
Postgraduates	455 (2014/15)[1]
Doctoral students	32
Location	Glasgow, Scotland
Director (Principal)	Tom Inns
Affiliations	University of Glasgow
Website	www.gsa.ac.uk

The Glasgow School of Art (GSA) is Scotland's only public self-governing art school offering university-level programmes and research in architecture, fine art and design. The school is housed in one of Glasgow's most famous buildings, often considered the masterpiece of Charles Rennie Mackintosh and built between 1897 and 1909. The building was severely damaged by fire in May 2014.

History

Founded in 1845 as the Glasgow Government School of Design, it changed its name to The Glasgow School of Art in 1853. It was first located at 12 Ingram Street and moved to the McLellan Galleries in 1869. In 1897, work started on a new building to house the school on Renfrew Street. The building was designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh, chosen for the commission by the school's director, Francis Newbery, who oversaw a period of expansion and fast-growing reputation. The first half of the building was completed in 1899 and the second half in 1909. The School's campus has grown since that time and in 2009, an international architectural competition was held to find an architect-led design team who would develop the Campus Masterplan and design the Phase 1 building. The competition was won by New York based Steven Holl Architects^[2] working with Glasgow based JM Architects.^[3] The Reid Building was completed in 2014 and sits opposite the Mackintosh Building on a site previously occupied by the Foulis, Assembly and Newbery Tower Buildings.

The school has produced most of Scotland's leading contemporary artists including, since 2005, 30% of Turner Prize nominees and four recent Turner Prize winners: Simon Starling in 2005, Richard Wright in 2009, Martin Boyce in 2011 and Duncan Campbell in 2014. The School of Architecture is highly rated by the architecture profession^[4] and the School of Design has been described by Design Week as "leaders in design education".^[5]

The School is organised into three academic schools, the Mackintosh School of Architecture (named after Charles Rennie Mackintosh, who is also the GSA's most revered alumnus), the School of Design and the School of Fine Art, each with its own academic programmes and research centres. Alongside the three schools there are a Digital Design Studio, specialising in 3D visualisation and interaction, a Forum for Critical Inquiry, which provides a range of non-studio-based learning, teaching and research, and the Graduate School. The GSA also has a long-established portfolio of non-degree provision, including leisure classes.

Disciplines include Fine Art Photography, founded by Thomas Joshua Cooper in 1982, Painting and Printmaking, Sculpture and Environmental Art, Product Design, Product Design Engineering, Textiles, Silversmithing and Jewellery, Interior Design, Communication Design, Digital Culture and Architecture.

2014 fire

The original Mackintosh building was severely damaged by fire on 23 May, 2014.^{[2014-fire 1][2014-fire 2]} The extent of the damage and the future of the building have still to be determined. An initial fire service estimate was that 90% of the building and 70% of its contents had been saved.^{[2014-fire 3]}

The fire, which began in the basement, quickly spread upwards and, although it was brought under control quite quickly, significant damage was done to the historic studios and stairways. The renowned Mackintosh library was destroyed; the archive was water damaged, but can be air and freeze dried^{[2014-fire 4]} There were no reported casualties.

The fire broke out as students were preparing for their Degree Show. Eyewitnesses said that the fire appeared to have started when a projector exploded in the basement of the Charles Rennie Mackintosh building just before 12:30pm.^{[2014-fire 5][2014-fire 6]} Investigators later determined that the cause was not a faulty projector, but "a canister of expanding foam" used in close proximity to a hot projector, causing flammable gases to ignite. ^{[2014-fire 7]} According to The Scotsman newspaper, the use of aerosol cans is against school policy. However, the report from the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service found that the design of the building contributed greatly to the spread of the fire: "…the number of timber lined walls and voids, and original ventilation ducts running both vertically and horizontally throughout the building“ as well as "a vertical service void," which "ran the entire height of the building …allowed flames, hot gases, and smoke to travel.” In addition, an intended "fire suppression system" for the building had not been completed. A school staff member was on hand when the blaze first ignited, but was unable to contain the fast-spreading flames.^{[2014-fire 8]}

Campus

Western facade of GSA's Mackintosh building

The school currently has two separate campuses: the School of Fine Art, Digital Culture, and MFA programmes are in the vicinity of the fire damaged Mackintosh building. The School of Design - Textiles, Jewellery & Silversmithing, Product Design Engineering, Product Design, Communication Design and Interior Design - the Centre for Advanced Textiles, Design Innovation Studio and the Where the Monkey Sleeps cafe have recently moved back to the Garnethill Campus with the occupation of the new Reid Building.

The Design Innovation Centre, a research centre of the School of Design is based in Forres and the school has a Representative Office in Beijing, PRC. The GSA has a specialist research and postgraduate centre - Digital Design Studio (DDS) based on the southside of Glasgow in a new facility at Pacific Quay by the River Clyde in a building called The Hub.^[6]

The Mackintosh Building was the heart of the campus and continued to be a functioning part of the school until a major fire on 23 May 2014. The building housed the Fine Art Painting department, first year studios and administrative staff. It houses the Mackintosh gallery which held many different exhibitions throughout the year. The Mackintosh Gallery (also known as the Mackintosh Museum) was the only part of the Mackintosh building open to the general public; all other areas of the school were only viewable by guided tour.^[7] An exception to this rule was the Degree Show where all the studios within the Mackintosh building were opened to allow people to view the graduating year's final artworks.

The Mackintosh School of Architecture and the school's library and learning resources are situated in The Bourdon Building.

The Barnes Building on West Graham Street is the base for the Sculpture and Environmental Art, International Foundation and Digital Culture programmes.

After the regeneration The Mackintosh building will still be centrepiece of the campus, though there are plans to sell off some of the more peripheral buildings.

An international architectural competition was launched in March 2009 to find the design team to prepare a campus masterplan and detailed design of the first new building phase.^[8] The winner of the competition was Steven Holl Architects,^[9] working in partnership with Glasgow’s JM Architects and Arup Engineering. Work commenced in 2011 and continued until 2013. The building was structurally complete in 2013.^[10] The new building has been named the Reid Building after the last Director: Dame Seona Reid, and won Building of the Year at the 2014 Architect's Journal awards - the AJ100 Awards in May 2014, and the Award for Arts or Entertainment Structures at the IStructE's 2014 Structural Awards.

Exhibitions

GSA runs an annual public programme of exhibitions and events. The Mackintosh Gallery has a curated programme that works with contemporary artists, designers and architects; GSA staff and students; and makes connections to the rich heritage and architecture of the Glasgow School of Art and its collections.^[11]

Singapore Campus

Since September 2012, the GSA has delivered years 3 and 4 of its Bachelor of Arts (Hons) Programmes in Communication Design and Interior Design in Singapore, in partnership with the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT), based at the Temasek Polytechnic Campus in Tampines. The programmes enable Diploma students from one of Singapore’s Polytechnics to progress from a Diploma to a BA (Hons) degree. Students studying in Singapore benefit from the same programme of study and award as in the home institution, along with resources and equipment according to GSA specifications.

Students and teaching

The GSA has been ranked in the top 10 of specialist educational institutions in the Guardian University Guide, ranking it the top specialist visual arts institution in the UK.^[12] Its degrees are validated by the University of Glasgow.

Of its 1,900 students, almost 20% are international, 20% from the Rest of the UK and approximately 20% are postgraduate.

The GSA is consistently ranked as one of the best art schools in the world, placed 10th in the 2015 QS World Rankings for Art and Design ^[13] and 2nd in the nationally ranking 2016 Complete University Guide league table for Art and Design.^[14]

HESA statistics show GSA to have one of the lowest student drop-out rates in the UK.^[15]

In 2002 the funding councils published figures which placed Glasgow School of Art as having the second-lowest number of students from a working-class background out of a list of UK higher education institutions. With 7% of its students coming from social classes IIIm, IV and V (skilled manual, semi-skilled or un-skilled workers), the figures put it above Oxford and Cambridge in terms of exclusivity. Glasgow School of art disputed the figures, explaining that the majority of its applicants did not come through the UCAS system on which the statistics were based so the numbers involved were very small. This was reinforced by HEFCE, which said the figures should be treated with care.^[16]

Student Unions and representation

Architectural model of the Glasgow School of Art.

Research and Knowledge Exchange

The Glasgow School of Art is host to a number of high-profile research projects, funded primarily through the Arts and Humanities Research Council, the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, and the Economic and Social Research Council, although other UK research councils have funded projects in the past.

At the last Research Assessment Exercise in 2008, the GSA had the second largest art and design research community in the UK and with 25% of research evaluated as world leading and 25% as internationally excellent. The GSA has a number of research centres including Digital Design Studio, Mackintosh Environmental Architectural Research Institute, Institute of Design Innovation,^[17] Centre for Advanced Textiles and the Glasgow Urban Lab^[18]

Research professors include Professor Thomas Joshua Cooper, Professor Alastair Macdonald, Professor Paul Anderson, Professor Tim Sharpe, Professor Irene McAra-McWilliam, Professor Ken Neil, Professor Johnny Rodger, Professor Christopher Platt and Professor Brian Evans.

The School currently has two Fulbright Distinguished Chairs within the Mackintosh School of Architecture: Professor Ann Markusen and Professor Juliana Maantay.

Notable students

Harry Benson - Photographer[19] Christine Berrie - Illustrator[20] Sam Black - Artist[21] Robert Henderson Blyth - Artist[22] Leonard Boden, Portrait painter[23] Christine Borland - Artist, 1997 Turner Prize Nominee[24] Martin Boyce - Artist, 2011 Turner Prize winner[24] Roderick Buchanan - Artist, 2000 Beck's Futures Winner[24] John Byrne - Playwright, Artist[24] Ian Callum - Automotive designer[24] Steven Campbell - Artist[24] Peter Capaldi - Actor - 1995 Oscar winner and twelfth Doctor Who[24] Emilio Coia - Caricaturist[24][25] Nathan Coley - Artist - 2007 Turner Prize nominee[26] Robert Colquhoun - Painter and printmaker[24][27] Robbie Coltrane - Actor - Starred in James Bond and Harry Potter films[24] Stephen Conroy - Award-winning painter[24] James Cowie - Painter[24][28] Hugh Adam Crawford - Painter[29] Ken Currie - Artist[30] Michelle de Bruin - Artist, Stonecarver and Lettercutter[24] Alexander Brownlie Docharty - Artist[31] David Donaldson - Painter and Limner to Her Majesty the Queen in Scotland[24] Christian Jane Fergusson - Artist,[32] Ian Hamilton Finlay - Artist, Poet, Turner Prize nominee 1984[33] Hannah Frank - Artist and sculptor[34] Alex Frost (artist) - Sculptor Douglas Gordon - Artist, 1996 Turner Prize winner[24] Alexander Goudie - Artist[35] Doris Grant - Nutritionist[36] Alasdair Gray - Novelist and muralist; Author of Lanark: A Life in Four Books[24] Muriel Gray - Broadcaster, author, journalist[24] Norah Neilson Gray - Artist[37] Sir James Gunn - Landscape and portrait painter[38] Bob Hardy - Bassist with Franz Ferdinand (band)[24] Fran Healy - of Glasgow-based band Travis[24] Pam Hogg - Fashion designer[24] Peter Howson - Artist[24] Cathy Jamieson - Politician[24] Chantal Joffe - Artist[39]

Jessie Marion King - Illustrator[24] Jim Lambie - Artist, 2005 Turner Prize nominee[24] Andrew Law - Portrait painter[40] Liz Lochhead - Playwright and poet[24] Ann Macbeth - Embroiderer and author[24][41] Margaret MacDonald - Artist[24][42] Rory Macdonald - Musician, songwriter, founding member of Runrig[43] Jimmie MacGregor - Folksinger and broadcaster[44] Alexander Mackendrick - Film director[45] Gillies MacKinnon - Film director[46] Charles Rennie Mackintosh - Artist, designer and architect[24] Oscar Marzaroli - Photographer[24] Iain McCaig – Illustrator, designer and Hollywood storyboard artist[47] Norman McLaren - Oscar-winning animation and filmmaker[24] Bessie MacNicol - Painter May Miles Thomas - Writer and director[48] Josephine Haswell Miller - Painter & designer, studied & taught at the GSoA. Thomas Corsan Morton - Artist[49] Sheila Mullen - Artist[50] Jessie Newbery - Textile artist, embroiderer[24] Cordelia Oliver - Journalist, painter and art critic for The Guardian[51] Dougie Payne - of Glasgow-based band Travis[24] Ciara Phillips - Canadian/Irish artist based in Glasgow[52] John Quinton Pringle - Artist Frank Quitely - Comics artist[53] Lili Reynaud-Dewar - Installation and performance artist Charles Sandison - Media Artist[54] Jonathan Saunders - Fashion Designer [55] Jenny Saville - Artist[24] Benno Schotz - Sculptor[24] David Shrigley - Artist and cartoonist[56] Lucy Skaer - Artist - 2009 Turner Prize nominee[57] Thomas S. Tait - Architect[24][58] Simon Starling - Turner Prize winning artist 2005[24] Alexander Stoddart, Sculptor in Ordinary for Scotland[24] Alison Watt - Artist[24] Toby Webster - Art dealer[59] Charles Gordon McClure (1885–1933), also known as Dyke White, cartoonist[24] Cathy Wilkes - Artist, 2008 Turner Prize nominee[60] Richard Wright - Turner Prize-winning artist 2009[61]

References

1. "2014/15 Students by HE provider, level, mode and domicile" (XLSX). Higher Education Statistics Agency. Retrieved 19 January 2016.
2. "Steven Holl Architects". Stevenholl.com. 7 February 2014. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
3. "jmarchitects". jmarchitects.net.
4. "World's Best Architecture Schools and Universities - Top 10 List". Graduatearchitecture.com. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
5. "Glasgow School of Art". Fulbright Partners. The US-UK Fulbright Commission. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
6. "Graphic Design Agency / Brand Consultants Midlands - Alt Design". Alt Design.
7. CathieRandall. "Tours". Gsa.ac.uk. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
8. Scottisharchitecture.com
9. Waite, Richard (17 September 2010). "Steven Holl unveils Glasgow School of Art Mackintosh designs". Architects Journal. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
10. "Glasgow School of Art Competition - Extension Building". Glasgow Architecture.
11. "GSA Events". Gsa.ac.uk. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
12. "University guide 2012: Specialist institutions league table". The Guardian (London). 17 May 2011.
13. http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/university-subject-rankings/2015/art-design#sorting=rank+region=+country=+faculty=+stars=false+search=
14. http://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/league-tables/rankings?s=Art%20%26%20Design
15. "University drop-out rate". BBC News. 4 June 2008.
16. MacLeod, Donald (18 December 2002). ""Glasgow 'posher' than Oxbridge"". The Guardian (London).
17. "Institute of Design Innovation on Vimeo". Vimeo.com. 11 December 2012. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
18. ScottParsons. "Research Centres". Gsa.ac.uk. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
19. "HARRY BENSON". socialstereotype.com.
20. "Artist profile". commarts.com. Communication Arts. 8 August 2009. Retrieved 6 September 2010.
21. Christopher Hives (1999). "Sam Black fonds". UBC / The British Columbia Archival Information Network. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
22. Royal Scottish Academy. "Images for Scottish Art, Robert Henderson Blyth". Royal Scottish Academy. Retrieved 16 June 2014.
23. Buckman, David (15 November 1999). "Leonard Boden Obituary". The Independent (London). Retrieved 9 October 2013.
24. "Famous Alumni". Glasgow School of Art. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
25. Emilio Coia HonLLD (Strath)
26. http://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-liverpool/exhibition/turner-prize-2007/turner-prize-2007the-artists
27. "Robert Colquhoun - Tate". Tate.
28. McTear's Auctioneers. "McTear's The Scottish Picture Auction". McTear's Auctioneers. Retrieved 8 May 2014.
29. Peter J.M. McEwan (1994). The Dictionary of Scottish Art and Architecture. Antique Collectors' Club. ISBN 1 85149 134 1.
30. "Your Paintings - Ken Currie". bbc.co.uk.
31. Halsby, Julian (1990). "Alexander Brownlie Docharty, 1862-1940". Venice, the Artist's Vision: A Guide to British and American Painters. Unicorn. ISBN 9780906290354. Retrieved 15 August 2014.
32. WJC Henderson (2010). "Chris J Fergusson (Chris Stark) The life and works of a Dumfries and Galloway artist". Retrieved 27 January 2015.
33. Hamilton Finlay 1925–2006
34. Hannah Frank, A Grasgow Artist. 1908 - 2008
35. Timothy Clifford, Alexander Goudie: Don Quixote of Glasgow artists, The Independent (London), 18 March 2004
36. "Doris Grant". The Daily Telegraph (London). 29 March 2003.
37. Norah Neilson Gray, Helsburgh Heroes, accessed July 2010
38. National Galleries of Scotland. "Scottish Artists A-Z − − H − Scottish Artists A-Z − Scottish Art − Collection − National Galleries of Scotland". nationalgalleries.org.
39. Foley, Jack. "A bold and beautiful new exhibition". IndieLondon. Retrieved 20 December 2010.
40. Frances Spalding (1990). 20th Century Painters and Sculptors. Antique Collectors' Club. ISBN 1 85149 106 6.
41. "Two Women of Distinction". The Glasgow Herald. 2 April 1948. Retrieved 9 February 2012.
42. Biography at the Charles Rennie Mackintosh Society
43. "Overview of Rory Macdonald". scottish-places.info.
44. "Early Years". jimmiemacgregor.com.
45. Alexander Mackendrick at the British Film Institute's Screenonline, also Article about Mackendrick's teaching career
46. "Gillies MacKinnon". British Film Institute. Retrieved 8 January 2014.
47. Wells, Tish (29 October 2008). "To Iain McCaig, 'Star Wars' characters are more than just imagination", McClatchy-Tribune News Service. Retrieved 16 November 2010.
48. "Elemental Films". elementalfilms.co.uk.
49. "Who's Who in Glasgow in 1909: T. CORSAN MORTON [ebook chapter] / George Eyre-Todd, 1909". strath.ac.uk.
50. Celia Purcell Contemporary. "Celia Purcell Contemporary". celiapurcell.com.
51. Grigor, Murray (26 January 2010). "Obituary". The Guardian (London). Retrieved 6 January 2013.
52. "Ciara Phillips". Re-title.com. Retrieved 8 May 2014.
53. Millar, Mark (w), Sprouse, Chris; Wong, Walden (a). Jupiter's Circle v2, 5 (April 2016), Image Comics
54. Charles sandison, biography
55. http://www.scotsman.com/news/interview-fashion-designer-jonathan-saunders-1-774442
56. "CURRICULM VITAE DAVID SHRIGLEY". David Shrigley.
57. "LUCY SKAER - YU". yaleunion.org.
58. "Thomas Smith Tait". Dictionary of Scottish Architects. Retrieved 16 November 2008.
59. Farago, Jason (8 May 2014). "Movers and makers: the most powerful people in the art world". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 May 2014.
60. Cathy Wilkes at Xavier Hufkens, Brussels
61. "Richard Wright Biography – Richard Wright on artnet". artnet.com.

2014 fire

1. "Glasgow School of Art: Fire crews battle to save building". BBC. Retrieved 23 May 2014.
2. "Glasgow School of Art fire brought under control". The Guardian. 23 May 2014. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
3. "Glasgow School of Art: Fire crews save most of building". BBC News. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
4. "Glasgow School of Art fire: Iconic library destroyed". BBC News. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
5. "Fire crews tackle blaze at Glasgow School of Art". BBC News. Retrieved 23 May 2014.
6. "Firefighters battle major blaze at Mackintosh Glasgow School of Ar". STV News. Retrieved 23 May 2014.
7. Reevel Alderson, Home affairs correspondent, BBC Scotland. "Glasgow School of Art blaze: Report says foam canister caused fire". BBC News. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
8. CRAIG BROWN. "Glasgow School of Art fire a ‘freak accident’". The Scotsman: Scotland on Sunday. Retrieved 26 November 2014.

External links

• Glasgow School of Art home page
• Glasgow School of Art Student Association
• Glasgow School of Art - Illustrated Guide
• Rcahms.gov.uk page featuring historical interior photographs of Glasgow School of Art

Coordinates: 55°51′58″N 4°15′50″W / 55.86611°N 4.26389°W

• GSA Exhibitions