Seven shortlisted bureaus were selected from among 153 workshops who wished to take part in the competition. This list is dominated by architects from the British Isles - Scottish studio Elder & Cannon, Irish bureau Grafton, London-based Scotsman John MacAslan in partnership with Nord Architects from Glasgow, Londoners Benson + Forsyth and Michael Hopkins. The only "outsiders" are Spaniard Francisco Mangado and American Stephen Hall (supported by JM Architects from Glasgow).
Despite the fact that the new academic building will be separated by a street from the historical building of C. R. Macintosh (they will be located opposite each other), the organizers hope to create some kind of dialogue between the buildings. Therefore, most of the finalists are known precisely for their work with architectural monuments in the prevailing urban environment.
It is worth noting that more eminent participants such as Richard Rogers, Zaha Hadid and David Chipperfield did not reach the final.
The new building has a budget of £ 50 million and is scheduled to open in 2013. Then it is planned to reconstruct the existing school complex, which, in addition to the Macintosh building, consists of several other buildings of varying degrees of value and functionality.
The winner will be announced on September 25, 2009.
