Famous Homes: Hill House by Charles Rennie Mackintosh

The architect, artist, and designer Charles Rennie Mackintosh is credited with helping to creating a genre of art and design known as the Glasgow School (a streamlined version of the concurrent Art Nouveau style, previously here), and his exemplary masterpiece, Hill House, is the subject of this month's installment of Famous Homes.

Located in Helensburg, Scotland--about 25 miles north-west of Glasgow--Hill House started as a plot of land purchased in 1902 by publishing magnate Walter Blackie. He intended to have a home built for his family and Blackie's friend Talwin Morris recommended architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh to create it. After seeing other homes he designed, Blackie hired Mackintosh. It seems it was a perfect match as Blackie's style direction for the house--no bricks and plaster or wood beam construction, and no red-tiled roof, but grey rough cast walls, and a slate roof instead--dovetailed neatly with Mackintosh evolving work within the Glasgow School. And in 1904, Mackintosh delivered just that.

All of the interiors were designed by Mackintosh as well, along with his wife, the artist Margaret Macdonald Mackintosh. Between them, they created a unique, bright white interior that supported the Mackintoshes belief that a minimalistic exterior should shelter an extraordinary interior. Textiles, rugs, furniture, fittings, and lighting fixtures were designed by the Mackintoshes as well as art work. Margaret Macdonald Mackintosh's gesso panel Sleeping Princess resides here along with some lovely embroidered textile hangings in a bedroom.

Along with highly stylized florals, the  rectilinear design of the interior is emblematic of Mackintosh, especially the use of perforated squares seen at the top of the classic ladder-back chair he designed specifically for this house, and which is currently available through license-holder Cassina here.

To clad the exterior of Hill House, Mackintosh selected portland cement harl, then a newly introduced product, for the surface finish but this was found to be less durable than traditional lime harl and by 2017 it was discovered to be in a precarious, soggy condition, putting the integrity of the whole building at risk of sever water damage. But the National Trust have built a very ambitious structure around the house to protect it. Their website describes it:

Mackintosh was a revolutionary designer, but the materials and techniques at the cutting edge of architectural design in 1900 haven’t withstood a century of the west of Scotland’s harsh, wet weather conditions.

The external render of the property has not proved watertight and the walls have gradually become saturated and are crumbling, with water now threatening the interiors.

If we don’t act soon, the house will be irreparably damaged and we’ll lose its iconic architecture and unique interiors forever.

We’re embarking on a 10-year conservation programme, which will allow continued public access to the house, but also offer views of the Hill House that have never been seen before, even by Mackintosh himself. Stage one opened to visitors in early June 2019, with a protective steel frame structure covered in chainmail mesh, featuring walkways around and over the top of the house. This structure, along with a new visitor centre, will deliver a unique heritage visitor experience.

You can visit the Hill House in Scotland and see The Box as well as eat some delicious Mackintosh inspired treats at the cafe. See the website for details.

Happy designing!