Everyone at Hoskins Architects has lost an exceptional architect, a visionary and a gifted leader, but above all a very good friend. Gareth leaves a huge gap, he was such a special person. We appreciate the very many messages of condolence that have already been received." — Chris Coleman-Smith, co-director of Hoskins Architects

The effect is a curious one, as if a voluptuous society beauty has opened her mouth to smile at you, only to reveal a thin row of rotting teeth. [...]

Depressingly, the numpties and panjandrums who sit on Edinburgh city council have squandered the opportunity to heal the wounds of the past. [...]

What is it with this city, whose custodians, over centuries, seem to be ashamed of having so much natural beauty bestowed upon it and constantly seek ways to diminish it? — Kevin McKenna via theguardian.com

They were once the tallest residential structures in Europe and a beacon of hope for residents of Glasgow’s slums. Now ... the remaining structures of the Red Road flats will, at last, be demolished. [...]

Built in the 1960s on Glasgow’s north-eastern edge, the flats were intended to house almost 5,000 people as part of an effort to ease overcrowding and combat slum conditions. But in the decades that followed, they were plagued by a range of problems, social and structural. — theguardian.com

Following RIBA's announcement of the 2014 Stirling Prize winner, two more UK-based projects won big in the 2014 Manser Medal and the Stephen Lawrence Prize competitions.

The Stormy Castle in Wales by Loyn & Co. Architects received the Manser Medal, which is the UK's highest housing design award. The Stephen Lawrence Prize, which recognizes fresh architectural talent and smaller construction budgets, went to a residential project this year: House No 7 in Scotland by Denizen Works. — bustler.net

For Scottish architects, a decision to go it alone could create longer-term opportunities for Scotland to enshrine its own architectural education and regulation system based on the protection of function. It could also boost the development of a strong, distinctively Scottish architectural culture […] Independence could well dissuade practices and architects from relocating south. — Architects' Journal

The GSA said that retrieving the archives and collections from inside the building was its “first priority”. [...]

Firefighters were able to save around 70 per cent of the Charles Rennie Mackintosh-designed building’s contents during the blaze.

But the famed Mackintosh library, which contained hundreds of rare periodicals and collections, was destroyed, along with countless works of art and the roof of the west wing. — express.co.uk

Designed by US architect Steven Holl, the new £30m building - which is part of a £50m project - replaces a 1970s concrete tower block.

It will bring the departments of design together under one roof, along with a new lecture theatre, workshops, canteen and staff offices.

Charles Rennie Mackintosh was a 28-year-old junior draughtsman at a Glasgow architecture firm when he drew up the designs for the building that many consider his masterpiece. — bbc.com

“When one office was doing well, another was not doing as well,” says the source. “But we always managed it so that there was the see-saw effect – one office would be profitable and another would be in the doldrums. But we managed to keep the group afloat.”

“What people are worried about now is that the people who ran the company down are still the ones in charge.” — scotsman.com

Housed in a magnificent Victorian building designed by Robert Matheson and Francis Fowke, the former Edinburgh Museum of Science and Art forms one half of today's National Museum of Scotland. The other half, next door, dates from 1998 and was designed by the architects Benson & Forsyth in a style that is half Scottish castle, half Le Corbusier monastery. Now, after a £46m renovation, the 19th-century museum reopens on Friday, and the two halves have finally been joined together. — guardian.co.uk

Holl’s relationship with Mackintosh is about to get more intense. Last week, Glasgow City Council granted planning permission for the £50 million GSA building Holl designed to be built across Renfrew Street from the Mackintosh Building. — heraldscotland.com