The Hidden Glasgow Forums

Any of you lot in the know, friends in high places, etc ?

Sorry to be a miserable cunt, I'm really looking forward to it's reopening, but i'm preying it isn't another People's Palace, with loudspeakers and crap. I loved the quiet, echoy atmosphere.

This question was prompted by getting a leaflet in the post, a bit about,

....."the galleries have been re-designed to be more informative & engaging for all ages - including under fives".....

got me worried. That usually means, noisey & flashing

It was on the news the other night their featuring a group of kids giving it a road test. Not too much footage, but you will be able to see a giraffe and spitfire when the doors open...

The kids looked like they were having a good time playing with the shiny new exhibits. It seems that there has been a greater emphasis placed on making it more accessible (entertaining) to kids.

What i don't want to get inside and see is something that is so over designed or over presented that the feeling of discovery and wonder is taken away. To me there should be room for questions and everything should not be spoonfed to you. Or rather the museum shoulds stimulate questioning.

The Kelvingrove almost felt like an adventure before. I worry that it will open its doors and give us something so over presented you almost cant see the exhibts. Something the temporary ehibitions at the likes of the Burrell arre guilty of.

Put it this way if you see kids running about pressing buttons on the interactive gizmos and not paying attention to whats really on show, they have failed. That said the kids on the news piece all named Sir Roger as the best thing there, so just maybe they have succeeded

Looking forward to it opeing.

Nope, but I'd really love to know what they're doing to the front (er, back actually ) of the building. Whatever they are putting in better be good because there was nothing wrong with the way it was before...

(If you don't know what I'm talking about): the whole grounds at the front of the Argyle St entrance have been dug up and ripped out. All the trees and pretty flower beds are gone. You can't yet tell what they're putting in its place as it's a right bloody mess of mounds of earth and newly laid concrete foundations.

I feel quite uneasy about the whole thing I hope i'm wrong.

Yeah I passed all that digging the other day, my feeling is they are installing snazzy new paving in front of it, similar to the tarting up at the People's Palace.

Careful, you'll get my hopes up! I love whats been done at the Peoples palace. It looks fabulous and a wee bit of that kind of quality on Sauchiehall street would be great to see.

The paving is great, and the new care the Glasgow Green is getting is fantastic. It lifts the whole area.
Inside the People's Palace gives me mixed feelings. Not enough exhibits, too many open spaces, and that giant gift shop, WTF

Eddie Friel told me he had a preview a few weeks ago. He was very impressed. He said they have removed all the internal offices type buildings which had been built on an ad hoc basis over the years with the result that light moves through the building as it was originally intended to. He felt this made a huge difference.

I've heard mixed reviews. One saying it was great, another saying it was a bit of a disappointment.

To be fair though, the disappointed person said they were expecting more by way of changes, and that there hadn't been much by way of dramatic new change. They reckoned most of the expense had gone on lighting, plumbing, heating, electrics etc (which were well past their sell by date.). the skylight windows did get the thumbs up.

The basement, which had just been full of offices and curatorial departments and collections has now opened to the public and that's where the shop, cafe etc will be now.

The news report mentioned looked hopeful, there didn't seem to any evidence of multimedia toys proliferating.

The oddest thing for me was seeing the cleaned stone inside the building - so many years of walking around the darkened surface of the original made that sight a bit of a surprise.

I also hope the exhibits remain as the main attraction, and not the flashing lights that the kids will run to and press buttons for some cheap gratification that misses the point.

The building and the exhibits are the reason for its existence, not to produce a technology showcase, and if there are no drastic changes, but more exhibits and an extension to the building's life thanks to the money spent on it, then I'll be pleased, and have somewhere to head for a quiet hour or two once again. (Once the rush dies down )

I think it sounds good. I had feared the worst but it looks like they've done a restrained and well thought out job.

Interactive high tech gizmos and geegaws are expensive and need replaced after a few years, as opposed to decent presentation of quality exibits which should (conservation permitting) last generations.

JayKay wrote:Interactive high tech gizmos and geegaws are expensive and need replaced after a few years, as opposed to decent presentation of quality exibits which should (conservation permitting) last generations.

Absolutely - on my visit to the Science Centre last year, the number of dead monitors, broken buttons and otherwise broken exhibits was all too noticeable. And even if the museum has a budget for replacements (and I doubt that in the case of GSC, without the revenue from the Tower), it's still off-putting.

Always thought the science museum was a bit light on actual science. Was a bit too much about pressing butons and a bit light on explanation.

Keep it all simple. And if kids are too lazy to read the caption cards, then sod em' Life's not all bloody video games

Couple of images of the new kelvingrove.

I hate it already!

I mean what the hell is this:


Yes i know it's a cafe, but i'm sure there was enough space inside for it without having to tag on the
effin' now ubiquitous friggin' ugly glass extension to such an historic building! Gah!!