Larger versions of these images are located at the foot of the page. Basic Biographical Details Name: | Isi Israel Metzstein | Designation: | Architect | Born: | 7 July 1928 | Died: | 10 January 2012 | Bio Notes: | Isi Israel Metzstein was born in the Mitte district of Berlin on 7 July 1928. His parents, Efraim and Rachel Metzstein, were Jews of Polish origin who had fled their native country in 1920 in search of a better life. Isi had a twin sister, Jenny, as well as two older brothers, Lee and Josef, and a younger brother, Leo. His father died in 1933, leaving his mother to bring up the five children alone. After the terror of Kristallnacht in November 1938, during which Isi’s all-Jewish school was set alight, his mother resolved that she and her children should flee. Thus, at eleven years of age, Isi became part of the Kindertransport, boarding the SS ‘George Washington’ which brought him to Britain.
Isi was initially taken in by a family in Hardgate, West Dunbartonshire, and was subsequently placed in a hostel with other refugee children. His mother and siblings having likewise managed to escape Germany (his oldest brother Josef has fled earlier, Leo and Isi’s twin sister Jenny arrived separately by train, and his mother and sister Lee escaped later), the family was among relatively few to be reunited at the end of the Second World War, and they settled in Glasgow, which he soon came to consider his home town – although he never lost his strong central European Jewish accent. Despite the fact that the course of his life was so closely determined by the rise of Nazism, he would always insist that he was not a ‘victim’ of the Holocaust, stressing that he had been fortunate enough to avoid its horrors and indeed to benefit from opportunities offered in his adopted country.
The young Isi attended Hyndland School. When he left in 1945, he had his sights set on a career in architecture; a friend’s mother was the seamstress of Eden Coia, wife of the celebrated architect Jack Coia, and it was through this connection that he secured an apprenticeship in the firm of Gillespie, Kidd & Coia, of which Coia was the only surviving partner. In the same year, Metzstein enrolled for evening classes at Glasgow School of Art. There he met Andy MacMillan, and the pair quickly became firm friends. Every Wednesday, what was often referred to as the ‘Isi and Andy’ double act could be found at the King’s Arms on Elmbank Street, discussing architecture, culture and politics.
Metzstein was to remain in the same architectural firm for the rest of his professional life, and MacMillan joined him there in 1954. The two were to carry out most of the practice’s design work from around 1957 onwards, as Coia approached retirement. Metzstein was elected a student member of the RIBA in 1957 though he does not seem to have become an Associate.
Working in a bold and highly original Modernist idiom, Metzstein and MacMillan collaborated on a series of notable Roman Catholic churches between that year and 1980, of which St Bride’s in East Kilbride (1963–4) is among the most remarkable. Their masterwork is considered to be St Peter’s Seminary, Cardross, completed in 1966, which was to be the first modern building to be awarded Category-A listed status. They were also responsible for a series of important university buildings, including halls of residence at Hull (1963–7), additions to Wadham College, Oxford (1971–7), and Robinson College, Cambridge (1974–80). Although strongly inspired by Le Corbusier, they drew on sources as diverse as Victorian Glasgow, medieval urbanism and abstraction, and Metzstein always emphasised the importance of designing from first principles.
In 1969 Metzstein began teaching at the Glasgow School of Art, and he spent an increasing amount of time doing so as commissions grew harder to come by in the 1970s. He was appointed Professor of Architecture at Edinburgh University in 1984, returned to teach in Glasgow in 1991, and also taught at the Architectural Association in London, as well as lecturing throughout the UK and further afield – including at Syracuse, with Richard Murphy. He earned a reputation as a great thinker and a highly inspirational teacher, the directness of his advice to students and colleagues alike balanced by great warmth and wit; MacMillan remembers him as ‘the king of the Jewish one-liner’. He and MacMillan were to receive a lifetime achievement award for teaching from the RIBA in 2007.
He met his future wife Dany, also of central European Jewish origin, at a cocktail party; it was a successful set-up that resulted in love at first sight. They married in 1967 and had three children: Saul, Mark and Ruth. All three would study under him, and his son Saul recalls that ‘he was a father figure to his students, of which there were many hundreds’. Metzstein shared his passion for travel with his family; he was particularly fond of New York, Venice and Paris. Among his other interests were science, language, puzzles and cinema; he stated that if it had been possible in 1940s Glasgow, he would have liked to become a film director.
Metzstein died at his home in Glasgow on 10 January 2012. He was survived by his wife, his three children, a grandson (Eli), and his sister Jenny and brother Leo.
| Private and Business AddressesThe following private or business addresses are associated with this architect: | | Address | Type | Date from | Date to | Notes |  | Glasgow, Scotland | Private/business | | | |  | 50, Great Western Road, Glasgow, Scotland | Private | Before 1960 * | After 1965 | |  | 1, Falcon Terrace, Glasgow, Scotland | Private | 1970 * | | |
* earliest date known from documented sources.
Employment and TrainingEmployersThe following individuals or organisations employed or trained this architect (click on an item to view details): | | Name | Date from | Date to | Position | Notes |  | Gillespie Kidd & Coia | 1945 | c. 1950 | Apprentice | |  | Gillespie Kidd & Coia | After 1950 | Before 1966 | | Job title between apprenticeship and partnership uncertain |  | Gillespie Kidd & Coia | Before 1966 | | Partner | |
Employees or PupilsThe following individuals were employed or trained by this architect (click on an item to view details): | | Name | Date from | Date to | Position | Notes |  | Mark Baines | | | Assistant | p129, Glendinning, 1997 |
Buildings and DesignsThis architect was involved with the following buildings or structures from the date specified (click on an item to view details): | | Date started | Building name | Town, district or village | Island | City or county | Country | Notes |  | 1953 | 'Domino' flats, Murray 1st Development | Murray, East Kilbride | | Lanarkshire | Scotland | |  | 1954 | Country House | Lochwinnoch | | Renfrewshire | Scotland | Alterations and additions |  | 1954 | St Joachim's RC Church and Presbytery | Carmyle | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | 1954 | St Mary's RC Church | | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | 1954 | University of Glasgow, Anatomy Building | | | Glasgow | Scotland | Alterations |  | 1955 | Oratory, 19 Park Circus | | | Glasgow | Scotland | Conversion of operating theatre into oratory |  | 1955 | St Maria Goretti RC Church | Cranhill | | Glasgow | Scotland | Design only |  | 1955 | Turnbull Hall Chapel | | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | 1956 | Catholic Retreat House | Craighead, Bothwell | | Lanarkshire | Scotland | Chapel formed from conservatory |  | 1956 | Simshill School | | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | 1956 | St Paul's RC Church | Glenrothes | | Fife | Scotland | |  | 1956 | St Peter's RC Church and Presbytery | Partick | | Glasgow | Scotland | Interior remodelled (and furnishings) |  | 1957 | Kildrum 1 Housing | Kildrum, Cumbernauld New Town | | Lanarkshire | Scotland | |  | 1957 | St Kessog's RC Church | Ballach | | Dunbartonshire | Scotland | |  | 1957 | St Paul's RC Church | | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | 1957 | University of Glasgow, Garscube Site, Veterinary Hospital & School | Garscube, Bearsden | | Glasgow | Scotland | Hospital |  | 1959 | Lockhart Hospital | Lanark | | Lanarkshire | Scotland | Maternity Hospital |  | 1959 | St Martin's RC Church, Ardencraig Road | Castlemilk | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | 1959 | St Peter's Seminary | Cardross | | Dunbartonshire | Scotland | |  | 1959 | Willox Park Home sheltered housing | Dumbarton | | Dunbartonshire | Scotland | |  | 1960 | Kildrum Primary School | Cumbernauld | | Lanarkshire | Scotland | |  | 1960 | St Mary of the Angels RC Church | Camelon, Falkirk | | Stirlingshire | Scotland | |  | 1960 | St Mary of the Assumption Church, Bo'ness | Bo'ness / Borrowstouness | | West Lothian | Scotland | |  | c. 1960S | St Benedict's RC Church, Drumchapel | Drumchapel | | Glasgow | Scotland | Designed by Isi Metzstein |  | 1961 | Howford School | Pollok | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | 1961 | Kilgraston Convent Chapel | Bridge of Earn | | Perthshire | Scotland | Low courtyard of school buildings and chapel |  | 1962 | St Benedict's RC Church | Easterhouse | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | 1963 | Our Lady's RC High School | Cumbernauld | | Lanarkshire | Scotland | |  | 1963 | St Bride's RC Church | East Kilbride | | Lanarkshire | Scotland | |  | 1963 | St Joseph's RC Church | Duntocher | | Dunbartonshire | Scotland | |  | 1963 | University of Hull, halls of residence | Hull | | Yorkshire | England | |  | 1964 | John Ogilvie Hall, Langside | Langside | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | 1964 | Our Lady of Good Counsel RC Church | | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | 1964 | Round Riding Road housing | Dumbarton | | Dunbartonshire | Scotland | |  | 1964 | Sacred Heart RC Church | Cumbernauld | | Lanarkshire | Scotland | |  | 1964 | St Patrick's RC Church | Kilsyth | | Stirlingshire | Scotland | |  | 1968 | BOAC Building, Buchanan Street | | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | 1968 | Notre Dame College, Consuela Hall | Bearsden | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | 1968 | Notre Dame College, Eyre Hall | Bearsden | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | 1968 | Notre Dame College, Julie Billiart Hall of Residence | Bearsden | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | 1968 | Notre Dame College, Lescher Hall | Bearsden | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | 1968 | Notre Dame College, Ogilvie House | Bearsden | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | 1969 | Notre Dame College | Bearsden | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | 1970 | St Margaret's Hospice | Clydebank | | Dunbartonshire | Scotland | First part |  | 1970 | St Margaret's RC Church | Clydebank | | Dunbartonshire | Scotland | |  | 1971 | Wadham College | | | Oxford | England | Alterations and additions |  | 1972 | Cumbernauld Technical College | Cumbernauld | | Dunbartonshire | Scotland | |  | 1974 | Robinson College | Cambridge | | Cambridgeshire | England | |  | 1975 | Bonar Hall | | | Dundee | Scotland | |  | 1981 | Glasgow School of Art refectory | | | Glasgow | Scotland | |  | Early 1980s | Craobh Haven village | Craobh Haven | | Argyll | Scotland | |
ReferencesBibliographic ReferencesThe following books contain references to this architect: | | Author(s) | Date | Title | Part | Publisher | Notes |  | Glendinning, Miles | 1997 | Rebuilding Scotland: The Postwar Vision, 1945-75 | | Tuckwell Press Ltd | pp32, 86, 116, 119, 132-40, 149-50, 153, 170 Cardross Seminary p36 BOAC Office p38-9 p41 Robinson College p60 Kildrum I p129 Photgraph of Professor Andrew MacMillan, Isi Metztein and Ian Gow 1990 p129-140 p156 St Paul's, Glenrothes p170-1 Cumbernauld Original Housing Areas p172 Kildrum Primary School p173 St Bride's |  | Miles Glendinning, Diane Watters, David Whitham | | Docomomo Scotland Leaflet | | | p226, p229, St Peter's Seminary and Cumbernauld Residential zone images |  | RIBA | 1961 | Kalendar 1960-61 | | | |  | Watters, Diane | 1997 | Cardross Seminary: Gillespie Kidd and Coia and the architecture of postwar Catholicism | | RCAHMS | |  | Willis, Peter | 1977 | New architecture in Scotland | | | p7 p11 BOAC Offices, Glasgow p34-5 Our Lady of Good Council, Glasgow p36-7 St Margaret's Church, Glasgow p56-9 St Peter's Seminary |
Periodical ReferencesThe following periodicals contain references to this architect: | | Periodical Name | Date | Edition | Publisher | Notes |  | Herald, The | 3 December 2013 | | | Obituary of Leo Metzstein. |  | RIAS Quarterly | 2012 | 9 | Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS) | Spring 2012 |  | Scotsman | 16 January 2012 | | | Obituary by his son Saul, p.43 |  | The Independent | 27 January 2012 | | | Obituary by Martin Childs |  | The Times | 12 January 2012 | | | Mike Wade, 'Scottish architecture's "conscience" dies', p.4 |  | The Times | 18 January 2012 | | | Obituary, p.52 |
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