The influential filmmaker, writer and exhibition curator Murray Grigor has criticised proposals for the former Royal High School.
In a short film by Richard Nicholls released this morning, Grigor criticises City of Edinburgh Council for allowing this 'sublime building' to decline. It is, he says, 'absolutely vital' and 'as important to the 18th and 19th centuries as Stirling Castle was to the 15th and 16th'.
The latest plans which went on public display last week (Breaking news, 6.3.15) would, says Grigor, deal the building a 'final blow'.
He argues that the developers' 'extraordinary misappropriation' has no connection with the Enlightenment and is 'more like something out of Vegas'.
He estimates that it would cost a comparatively modest £12m to restore the building, which could then be a destination monument in its own right or operate as a museum or music academy.
To see the film, follow this link.
Before last week's PAN exhibition, Grigor had been highly critical of the first-stage proposals in February, and the questionnaire circulated afterwards on which the developers largely base their claims of public support. A copy of his response is reproduced with permission below.
Grigor's 1968 documentary on Charles Rennie Mackintosh was an important step in popularising and preserving the artist's architectural legacy. He is alarmed that City of Edinburgh Council may have a cultural blindspot when it comes to the similarly important talent of Thomas Hamilton, and the old Royal High School's inclusive potential for future generations.
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Euan MacGuzzi McGlynn well said