Willow Tearooms

The Willow Tearooms are in Glasgow ( Sauchiehall Street 217) located tea place, which was designed by the Scottish architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh. It was opened in October 1903 and quickly became popular, but later experienced a decline. The present state largely based on reconstruction.

History

In 1896 Mackintosh met Catherine Cranston, daughter of a wealthy tea merchant from Glasgow, who was engaged active in the temperance movement. Cranston had the idea to create a series of artistically designed Tea Rooms, which should serve as places non- alcoholic embossed socializing. Mackintosh designed for Cranston 1896-1917 four such Tea Rooms in Glasgow, often in collaboration with his wife Margaret MacDonald. In the case of Willow Tearoms Mackintosh was the first full design freedom also layout and facade.

On the basis of an existing narrow, four-story warehouse Mackintosh designed a series of premises: a ladies ' tea room on the ground floor, a dining room and behind it a Teegalerie about it. On the first floor there were an exclusive Room de Luxe, which was also dedicated to the ladies. In addition there were a wood paneled billiard room and the smoking room for the gentlemen.

The decoration was held for the ladies dedicated rooms in bright colors, dark in the men's rooms. Mackintosh designed in collaboration with his wife Margaret at the facade, but also took care of the design of the cutlery to the menus and the uniforms of the staff. His work can be viewed as an effort by a work of art.

The Room de Luxe

The Room de Luxe was the main attraction of the Willow Tearooms. His color scheme was gray, purple, white, one of the walls contained Margaret MacDonald's most famous work, the panel, inspired by Rossetti's sonnet O Ye, all ye did walk in Willow Wood.

Decay and rebirth

After the death of her husband Cranston sold her company in 1917. The Willow Tearooms in 1928 part of a department store, facade and function, however, remained partly to the 1980s intact.

After extensive renovation by the architect Geoffrey Wimpenny from the office Keppie Henderson, successor of Honeyman, Keppie and Mackintosh Willow Tearooms in 1983 the largely reopened the original. On the ground floor but is now a jewelry business.

The Room de Luxe was re- designed in the sense of the old color scheme and received replicas of the original seating. The new operator of the Tearooms, Anne Mulhern, 1997, a branch in the Buchanan Street 97, in the immediate vicinity of Catherine Cranston's Tearooms opened his time there. The store is designed by Mackintosh's plans for the White Dining Room and Chinese Room, which the architect for Cranston's Tearoom in Ingram Street had created.