Glasgow, the McLellan Galleries building - geograph

Archibald McLellan by Robert Cree Crawford Cree (after John Graham-Gilbert)

The McLellan Galleries are a major exhibition space in the city of

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, situated behind a frontage of shops and offices in Sauchiehall Street.

History

As part of the city's expansion on Blythswood Hill spearheaded by William Harley, the Galleries were built in 1855-6 to a design by architect James Smith of

Blythswood Square Blythswood Square is the Georgian square on Blythswood Hill in the heart of the City of Glasgow, Scotland. The square is part of the 'Magnificent New Town of Blythswood' built in the 1800s on the rising empty ground west of a very new Buchana ...

at a cost of £40,000 .They are named after their founder,

Archibald McLellan Archibald McLellan (1795 or 1797 – 22 October 1854) was a Glasgow coachbuilder, art collector, councillor and magistrate. The McLellan Galleries on Sauchiehall Street are named after him. Early life McLellan was baptised in Glasgow on 12 ...

(1795–1854), a coach builder, councillor and

patron of the arts Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings, popes, and the wealthy have provided to artists su ...

. Following his death,

Glasgow Corporation The politics of Glasgow, Scotland's largest city by population, are expressed in the deliberations and decisions of Glasgow City Council, in elections to the council, the Scottish Parliament and the UK Parliament. Local government As one of ...

acquired the galleries and collection, and for a time they were known as the Corporation Halls before reverting to their former owner's name. The Galleries housed

Glasgow School of Art The Glasgow School of Art (GSA; gd, Sgoil-ealain Ghlaschu) is a higher education art school based in Glasgow, Scotland, offering undergraduate degrees, post-graduate awards (both taught and research-led), and PhDs in architecture, fine art, and ...

from 1869 to 1899. In October 1986, the shop frontage building housing the Galleries was ravaged by fire, but they re-opened in 1990 as the largest quality, climate-controlled, temporary exhibition gallery in Scotland. They continue to be the largest exhibition space in the city-centre. While

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is a museum and art gallery in Glasgow, Scotland. It reopened in 2006 after a three-year refurbishment and since then has been one of Scotland's most popular visitor attractions. The museum has 22 galleries, h ...

was closed for refurbishment between 2003 and 2006, the McLellan Galleries hosted a display of its best-loved works. The McLellan Galleries were then leased to the

as studio and storage space in preparation for the planned redevelopment of the

campus. Since 2012 there has been public discussion involving user organisations such as the

Royal Glasgow Institute of the Fine Arts The Royal Glasgow Institute of the Fine Arts (RGI) is an independent organisation in Glasgow, founded in 1861, which promotes contemporary art and artists in Scotland. The institute organizes the largest and most prestigious annual art exhibitio ...

with a view to re-establishing the McLellan Galleries as a major feature in Glasgow’s cultural life. The galleries have been protected as a

category B listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

since 1970.

References

External links

Glasgow Museums' website on the McLellan

Glasgow City Council's page on the McLellan Galleries
{{Glasgow museums Cultural infrastructure completed in 1856 Art museums and galleries in Glasgow Glasgow School of Art Category B listed buildings in Glasgow Art galleries established in 1856 1856 establishments in Scotland