THE BUILDING SITE FOR A RESTORATION BECOMES A TEMPORARY MUSEUM
Tamporary Set Up for the Hill House Recovery, Helensburgh, Scotland
Carmody Groarke
The Hill House is one of Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s most significant works and a seminal part of early 20th century European architecture. Built in 1902 for the publisher Walter Blackie and his young family, it is situated in Helensburgh, 30km west of Glasgow, and commands panoramic views south over the River Clyde estuary. This unusual hybridisation of tradition and invention in the construction of the building has led to some fundamental long-term problems of prolonged water damage that require a major conservation project to help the house survive. Rather than incarcerate the house away from view whilst the restoration is undertaken, a more radical approach to active conservation has been taken. As an integral part of this process of conservation, the project places a “big-box” temporary museum on the site to contain and protect the Hill House as an “artefact”, whilst also maintaining access to the house for visitors.
