Charles
Rennie Mackintosh,
the son of a police superintendent, was born in Glasgow
in 1868. He was educated at the Allan Glen's School before starting
his architectural apprenticeship. He attended evening classes at the
Glasgow School of Art and in 1889 joined the firm of Honeymen and
Kepple.
Although Mackintosh's architectural output was fairly small he had
a considerable influence on European design. Especially popular in
Austria and Germany, Mackintosh's work was highly acclaimed when it
was shown at the Vienna Secession Exhibition in 1900. It was also
exhibited in Budapest, Munich, Dresden, Venice and Moscow.
An outstanding exponent of the Art Nouveau style, Mackintosh was responsible
for the Glasgow School of Art (1897-99), its library block (1907-09),
the Cranston Tearooms and Hill House in Helensburgh. His work, often
done with his wife, Margaret Macdonald,
included interior design, textiles, furniture and metalwork.
In 1914 Mackintosh and left Scotland and afterwards did no more major
architectural work. While in London he
designed fabrics, book covers and furniture. He moved to France in
1923 and over the next four years produced a series of beautiful watercolours.
Charles Rennie Mackintosh died in 1928.
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