Enduring Scottish Artists: Margaret MacDonald and Charles Rennie Mackintosh
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| Margaret MacDonald Mackintosh and Charles Rennie Mackintosh (Public domain, James Craig Annan,) |
Scottish Artists Of the late 19th and Early 20th Century
Artist Margaret MacDonald Mackintosh (5 November 1864 - 7 January 1933)
Architect Charles Renni Mackintosh (7 June 1868 - 10 December 1928)
Margaret Mackintosh (nèe MacDonald) was a Designer/Decorative Artist who worked with watercolor, stainglass, textiles, embroidery, and metalwork. She met and later married Charles Rennie MacKintosh, a Scottish Architect. Together, they were members of what was known as “The Glasgow Four”, “The Four”, or by some, “The Ghoul School”.
Margaret MacDonald
(Francis C, YouTube; March 8, 2009)
The Glasgow Four (1892-1914)
Margaret MacDonald, husband Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Frances MacDonald (Sister), and her husband J. Herbert McNair; who were all students at the Glasgow School of Art. “The Four” became the embodiment of what is known as ‘The Glasgow Style’ (1896-1914), contributing greatly through Architecture and Design to the Art Nouveau and Symbolism movements. They also had a remarkable influence on the Viennese Art Nouveau Movement, also known as the Wiener Secession (Vienna Secession); as well as
the European art and architecture scene in the early 20th Century.
Marriage (1900)
Together with her renowned Architect husband, they attained international notoriety and continued recognition; winning countless honors during the early period of their marriage. It has also been said, whilst collaborating, Margaret MacDonald Mackintosh would sign her name as “MMM”.
“Margaret has a genius, I only have talent”, stated Mackintosh about his wife.
What began as promising careers were summarily dashed due to the interruptions by war, and ideological shifts. The absence of their artwork through loss or destruction over the years, including a recent architectural fire at the Glasgow School of Art, has left what may be considered a “void” from their collaboration and international accomplishments.
Thanks to various schools, museums, books, and societies, we are still able to catch a glimpse of their combined body of work.
Documentary
BBC Two HD Mackintosh Glasgow’s Neglected Genius (2018)
(DiMarco Documentaries, YouTube; May 26, 2019)
Articles and Links
By Anne Fotheringham, Glasgow Times; August 16, 2020
By Alan Senior, The Theosophical Society in America; May-June 2002
Coming Exhibition
Charles Rennie Mackintosh: Making the Glasgow Style
Albuquerque Museum October 30, 2021-January 23, 2022
Warning: Documentary displays Art Nudity, which may be offensive to some viewers.
By Staff, thesameconnection.com