Mackintosh House - Nit (Glasgow)

hello. There are pieces of Macintosh IN the Hunterian gallery but I wonder if you meant Hill House which is the house he designed for Catherine Cranston (owner of the tea room on Sauciehall). This is NORTH of Glasgow--you probably would need a car (ie I have no idea about public trans up to it). Of course, there is also going to the Glasgow School of Art but they had another bad fire a few years ago and I am not sure what is open/rebuilt, etc.

For Hill House there are frequent trains to Helensburgh Central from Glasgow then a steep uphill walk, about 15 minutes (or cab off the rank at Central), or Helensburgh Upper on the Oban/Mallaig line (about 6 trains a day each way). The trick is to get a train to Upper and walk down to Central!!

The trains to Central actually run all the way from Edinburgh.

Yes I think there's been a little misunderstanding either on Rick's part or yours.

The Mackintosh House that you mention is a recreation of interiors within the Hunterian. The fittings and furnishings in this display are from a house which Mackintosh owned at 78 Southpark Avenue, which is just around the corner from the museum. The actual house itself is now owned by the university, and is used by one of the faculties of the university in university business (or no longer exists and has been replaced by the university's Fraser Building? Not sure.)

House For an Art Lover in Bellahouston Park, Glasgow and Hill House in the town of Helensburgh, some miles west of Glasgow, are actual buildings designed by Mackintosh.

https://www.gla.ac.uk/hunterian/collections/collectionssummaries/art/themackintoshcollection/
https://maps.app.goo.gl/8P65x6akFaPF1owB6
https://www.nts.org.uk/visit/places/the-hill-house
House For an Art Lover

GerryM - the actual house was torn down years ago but the school kept the interiors and made careful records of the house. That is all in the book. My comment is that several of us read the guide and it refers to the Mackintosh house - we thought that there was an actual separate building. I talked to two people in the street near there and both of them gave me directions to the house - while we were standing outside of the Hunterian museum (where the "house" is).

Ah that's a shame it wasn't as clear as it could be. I noticed the even numbers in Southpark Avenue were missing on Google Maps. I'm pretty sure they were there the last time I walked up that street, but I read the Fraser Building has been open since 2009. That sort of dates my knowledge! The only time I've been in the Hunterian was to see the anatomical and medical exhibits with a friend who had more interest in such things than me. Creepy!

It might be worthwhile contacting the editors of Rick Steves' Europe guide books to suggest an amendment if you think it warrants it.
- https://www.ricksteves.com/forms/guidebook-feedback-form

Welcome to the forum.

A bit of correction is in order here - The Hill House was not designed for Miss Cranston , for whom he did the tearoom work , but for the publisher , Walter Blackie , and his family , in 1902 .

By the way. It's " Sauchiehall " . and it means Avenue of Willows .

Another note - the House for an Art Lover was built relatively recently, but inspired by a published design by Mackintosh.

Yes , The House for an Art Lover was built in the nineties. Mackintosh drew the plans for a 1902 competition , but was a day or so late in submission which kept him from winning first prize . He was at that point ( as always ,with his brilliant wife ) deeply involved in their contribution to that year's Vienna Secession exhibition .

I am looking at my RS Scotland Book (getting ready for the RS tour later this month). Page 168 says the following:
"Hunterian Gallery and Mackintosh House: First, stop in at the Hunterian Gallery and ask about touring the Mackintosh House. Usually you can walk right in, but if there's a wait, you can kill time by touring the Hunterian Gallery (which shares an entry lobby)." [emphasis mine]

I am sorry that you were confused by the RS book. My understanding from the RS book is that you have to buy the tickets for the Mackintosh House at the Hunterian Gallery. That would have been the fist place I would have gone both for tickets and clarification on the location.

Mary - do you have the third edition? The language in the third edition is very similar to what you said. As I said, the book implies that the Macintosh House is (to my reading) a separate building. They mention "reception desk" and there could have been one at the Hunterian Gallery and one at the (non-existent) Mackintosh House. We looked for the House and when we did not find it we went into the Hunterian Gallery and did ask at the reception desk - and they pointed behind us. We even asked two different people (just random strangers) and both gave us "directions" to the House! The third edition does not mention a shared lobby.

It just seems that the book could be clearer that the Mackintosh House is a part of the Hunterian Gallery. Several of us, all experienced travelers, read the book and thought that the House was a separate building.

I have the fourth edition, published January 2023. If you go to the Mackintosh House website, it says "The Mackintosh House, now an integral part of the Hunterian Art Gallery..." The map they provide online clearly point the Hunterian Gallery and Mackintosh House to the same building. I hope this will be useful for future readers of the RS forum.

https://www.gla.ac.uk/hunterian/visit/gettinghere/