Scottish Architecture

World of Art

by Miles Glendinning, Aonghus MacKechnie

This is a concise, up-to-date survey that provides for the visitor or resident an overview of Scotland's finest buildings and its long line of architectural geniuses.

Genres: Art

224 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2004

About the author

Miles Glendinning (b. 1956) is a reader in the School of Architecture at the Edinburgh College of Art and director of the Scottish Centre for Conservation Studies.

Reviews

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this overview of Scottish architecture, from Neolithic times through the Picts and the Romans, the Vikings and the Middle Ages, to the classicists and Victorians to the present. Though limited by simply being an overview, the authors delved into particular styles and covered some of Scotland’s most famous architects in depth, particularly Robert Adam and Basil Spence. I really appreciated the connection between architecture, history, and culture highlighted by the authors. I’m looking forward to seeing some of n these architectural wonders on my upcoming trip to Scotland.

[Amy]

Really enjoyed this book but I think its argument was too strong for an introductory or general survey. I was joyfully carried along by the authors’ enthusiasm as they discussed the architecture of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. But fundamentally I wasn’t sure that I agreed with their argument and instead of an unopinionated introductory survey to all of Scottish architecture I got a forceful, though admittedly well-argued, essay on When the Golden Age In Architecture Was. So maybe the problem was my expectations rather than the book. But then what do I know about architecture anyway? Certainly more than when I started reading this, which is all that one can ask for.

[Ralph Britton · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good summary treatment of Scottish Architecture, from the Neolithic to modern. Inevitably the author cannot give much space to any particular architect or building, but the book does put the buildings I have seen in context and has suggested a few that I would very much like to visit. The judgements made are balanced and sensible.