With the current restrictions on face-to-face events at Queen’s Cross we are organising a number of online talks throughout 2021.

Monday 15th February 2021 | 5pm GMT | via Zoom Book Your Online Free Ticket

Robyne Calvert joins us to discuss the unique working relationship of Charles Rennie Mackintosh and his wife and artistic partner Margaret Macdonald.

With an intimate understanding of his friends Charles Rennie and Margaret Macdonald Mackintosh, German architect and critic Herman Muthesius dubbed them the künstlerpaar – the art couple. After a century of scholarship we are still intrigued, and somewhat perplexed, by Mackintosh’s working relationship with his wife and artistic partner Margaret Macdonald. No one denies that Macdonald played a critical role in Mackintosh’s world, but to what extent her influence was felt in his work is still a matter of debate. For Valentine’s Day, Dr Robyne Calvert will talk about the Mackintosh’s collaborative work, such as elements of tea room interiors and their installation A Rose Boudouir, to explore some of the complexities and misunderstandings that arise from intimate creative partnerships. It will also look to other Glaswegian ‘Art Couples’ such as Herbert and Frances MacNair, Francis and Jesse Newbury, and Jessie M King and E.A. Taylor.

Image: A Rose Boudoir Installation by the Mackintoshes