Glasgow School of Art (GSA) has appointed two architectural firms to "robustly test" its plans to rebuild the fire-ravaged Mackintosh Building.
Edinburgh-based architects Reiach and Hall, with heritage specialists Purcell, will undertake the addendum to the Strategic Outline Business Case (SOBC), which was prepared by Avison Young on behalf of GSA from December 2020 to June 2021.
The SOBC sought input from the local community, heritage sector, Glasgow City Council, the Scottish Government and GSA alumni, students and staff.
It concluded that the best option is "to undertake a faithful reinstatement within the practical constraints of the regulatory environment" of the A-listed building, which was extensively damaged by a blaze in June 2018 while it was undergoing a £35 million restoration following a previous fire in May 2014.
The SOBC Addendum, which is set to be published in early 2025, will identify the appropriate route to delivery of the faithful reinstatement of the Mackintosh Building.
READ MORE: Glasgow School of Art Fires: Find all the articles in the series here
According to GSA, it "will ensure the GSA can make evidenced-based decisions, ensuring the Mackintosh Building is successfully rebuilt as a working school of art and contributes to the regeneration of Sauchiehall Street and Glasgow City Centre".
"The combined team will commence work immediately and, with cost and economic consultants, robustly test the GSA’s previous assumptions, costs and economic impact, timelines and approaches to delivery of this significant project", GSA added.
Following the 2018 fire, the Mackintosh Building site was under the control of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service while they undertook a fire investigation report (published in January 2022). The Mackintosh Building was handed back to GSA in late summer 2021.
Following publication of the SFRS Fire Investigation Report, GSA undertook further advance works to the Mackintosh Building with Phase 1, physical preparation works and removal of fire damaged material, completed in January 2023.
The works included the installation of the temporary roof and building wrap to enable the drying out of the building to commence, alongside continued reduction in scaffold and further strategic removal of unstable parts of the structure - including removal of the library piers (replaced post 2014 fire) and internal brick work repairs. The reduction in the external scaffold also allowed for the re-glazing of the adjacent Reid Building, which was damaged in the 2018 fire.
Work to date on the Mackintosh Building reinstatement project, totalling £18 million, has been funded by interim payments from the insurers.
Commenting on this next stage back in May, Professor Penny Macbeth, Director of GSA said: “We are committed to the faithful reinstatement of the Mackintosh Building, and for that to be done in an exemplary way, returning it as a working art school building at the heart of Glasgow’s creative and cultural eco-system.
“While the protective wrap installed in June 2023 does its job of allowing the building to dry out over the next couple of years, it is important that we move forward with parallel work strands in what is a complex building project.
“What we are now doing, through the SOBC Addendum process, robustly testing our previous assumptions, economic impact, timelines and approaches to delivery, whilst initiating arbitration with our insurers, will ensure we can make strategic, evidenced-based decisions, ensuring the Mackintosh Building is successfully rebuilt and contributes to the regeneration of Sauchiehall Street and this part of Glasgow City Centre.”
In March, VisitScotland, the national tourism organisation for Scotland, said that the restoration of the Mackintosh building “will present a significant opportunity to engage visitors in the Mackintosh story, creating increased interest in his legacy spread across the several Mackintosh attractions, as well as the wealth of other cultural attractions in Glasgow”.
Lynne Cooper, VisitScotland’s Regional Director, told The Herald: “Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s influence on Glasgow is undeniable. His enduring work has strong credentials for attracting visitors, and Mackintosh remains among the cultural drivers identified in the new Glasgow 2030 Tourism Strategy, published in autumn last year.
“VisitScotland works closely with Glasgow Life and the Mackintosh heritage attractions on marketing and business development and we’ll continue that work to build momentum towards the return of the School of Art building in the years ahead.”
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