Kelvin Hall, Argyle Street, Glasgow

Kelvin Hall, Argyle Street, Glasgow

Kelvin Hall is a substantial exhibition hall designed by Thomas P M Somers and built between 1926 and 1927, with later additions by Somers in 1931 and 1938. The building was converted to a museum and sports complex between 1984 and 1988 by Glasgow District Council Architect's Department, with hall space engineered by Considere Constructions Ltd.

The building comprises a palatial principal block in Baroque style fronting Argyle Street, responding to Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum opposite, constructed in red sandstone ashlar. Behind this extends red brick exhibition warehousing and service blocks with grey brick dressings and part base course, with later grey brick elevations to the east side and rear.

The Argyle Street frontage features a tall central composition of single, two and three storeys, arranged across 11 bays with twin towers flanking a central section. A tall single storey nine-bay colonnaded porte cochere dominates the ground floor. The colonnades have pedestals to columns and outer piers, with entablature, balustrade and dies above supporting a balcony. The inner colonnade comprises square piers with steps (later tiled) leading to an inner pilastrade dividing nine glazed bays, with a panelled timber lintel band at mid height above the doors providing a horizontal divide. Above this sits a glazed nine-bay pilastrade with full entablature featuring a mutuled cornice, balustrade, dies, urn finials and a central tablet bearing carved armorial.

The outer bays of the central block form towers with monumental towerheads. These rise three storeys with angle pilasters capped with obelisk finials and pilaster strips dividing three windows to each floor, rising as brackets to the cornice. The towerheads themselves recede upward in layered ashlar bands, with further balustrade and obelisk finials to the angles, crowned with leaded finials bearing bronze filigreed orbs, and topped with rooftop shelters comprising square-headed, keystoned structures.

Lower two-storey flanking wings extend eight bays on each side, set back slightly with anchoring pavilion ends. These feature a colonnaded screen of seven bays with ashlar wall behind. Each bay contains a tripartite stone mullioned window, with entablature above incorporating a balustrade and dies that act as parapet to a low upper storey. The upper storey has shorter stone mullioned tripartite windows set back, with wallhead cornice and blocking course. The outer eighth bay pavilions terminate the elevation in channelled masonry with paired columns in front of windows and mutuled cornice above. Massive square corner finials flank squat octagonal second stage structures, each with a husk-garlanded oculus to the face, capped with leaded domes and obelisk finials. Decorative ironwork railings are present to the window of the east pavilion.

The east elevation on Blantyre Street divides into two parts. The right section retains the original red brick with a red sandstone pilastered and keystoned square-headed vehicular opening to the outer right (with panelled folding timber doors). A grey brick band divides the stages, above which sits a deep glazed brick band with grey dressings containing nine regularly spaced square window openings and one louvred and enlarged opening. Red sandstone corbel and band courses rise above with a deep brick parapet-like wallhead. The longer centre and left sections were added in the 1970s in plain grey brick with a painted wallhead over a sandstone dividing band. A projecting white canopy with moulded frieze marks an entrance to the centre with internal steps.

The west elevation on Bunhouse Road comprises five distinct parts. The first part mirrors the right bays of Blantyre Street with window band, but includes a long five-bay white painted entrance arcade at ground level, approached by steps. The second part has projecting bays with similar detailing but incorporates 1984-88 reworking of a lavatory block to the left and lower level, a two-stage curved engine house and store block projecting to the right (added 1938), and a polygonal tapering red engineering brick stalk to the right, with grey brick dressings to vehicular entrances interspersed with regularly disposed square windows to the upper stage. The recessed third and central part features a white painted entrance arcade (as the first part, accessed by steps) with a 1984-88 bowed canopy extending at the centre on tubular metal supports with caged airy columns. The fourth stage has a projecting lower block of 1931 with a further grey dressed carriage entrance. The fifth stage comprises a recessed tea room and three-storey store with a re-entrant angle filled with a later single storey garage, and four stone margined carriage bays to the right, with single and bipartite windows to the second and third stages. The original store windows to the centre feature semicircular second floor windows in arched recesses.

The south elevation on Old Dumbarton Road was altered to match the east side in the 1970s, though original red brick bays remain to the west. A three-storey store returns to the outer left, angling after the second bay with a largely blank ground floor. Tripartite windows appear on the second floor and semicircular windows on the third floor in arched recesses to the outer left and three bays to the right. The ground floor diminishes to basement status as the ground rises to the east. A brick screen wall encloses the yard with stone piers. A grey brick addition was made for a new rear entrance with a monumental elevation inspired by the Royal Festival Hall, featuring a cantilevered canopy over stepped entrance with moulded frieze.

Windows throughout comprise plate glass fixed and casement windows to the Argyle Street front block, with small-pane sash and case windows and border-glazed over door lights. Classical cross-glazing patterns appear on original windows to the fenestrated bands of side elevations, with small-pane windows to the stores. Border-glazed pedestrian doors accompany panelled folding and metal roller doors to vehicular openings. The front range is covered by a pantiled piended roof.

The exhibition hall itself features a mass concrete structure with four-part reinforced concrete vaulting and roof trusses, spanning 390 feet at its widest point across three vaults of 110 feet and one of 60 feet. The massive vaulted concrete roof is supported on 22 octagonal columns of 24 inches diameter, spaced 55 feet apart from north to south, with glazed ridged cupolas providing light.

The interior of the Argyle Street frontage contains sumptuous period classical decorative schemes. The piazza lobby at ground level features a marble pilastrade and wall covering with plaster entablature incorporating a mutuled cornice and coffered sections, later replaced with tile flooring. Panelled timber inner doors have brass kick plates. Above this, the conference hall is lit to the hall side with leaded glazing and some coloured glass. The flanking towers contain shops and offices with stairs to the rear, whilst the flanking wings house offices and public toilets in the outer pavilions. A decorative iron balcony with cross-section pattern sits above the lobby entrance. The hall encompasses 171,000 square feet (15,885 square metres). A galleried tea room occupies the southwest corner. Subsequent additions and alterations have been made throughout the building.