Phase 1, Ward 10, Bringing the City's Archives to Life

As part of Glasgow Life’s Creative Communities Artists in Residence programme for Ward 10, Anderston/City, Donna Rutherford delivered Bringing the City’s Archives to Life, a project examining the long-lasting impact of the M8 motorway, which carved its way through Glasgow’s centre, dividing communities and reshaping everyday life.

Donna’s practice is rooted in personal storytelling. Alongside researching the city’s archives, including at The Mitchell Library and Kelvin Hall, she connected with local interest groups. Visiting familiar meeting places to hear from those directly affected and to root out their personal experiences of the issues and changes that have affected Anderston, Cowcaddens, Garnethill, Townhead, and the city centre.

Donna’s focus emerged through conversations with older women born between 1922 and 1963, who spoke of how shifts in work, healthcare, housing and aspiration changed their lives.

The result was an evocative audio installation and accompanying book, blending interview excerpts with field recordings from pub singers, choirs and street buskers.

Presented simultaneously at Kelvin Hall, GoMA and the Mitchell Library, the work offered an immersive space for reflection on memory, displacement, and resilience. It sparked wider conversations around wellbeing, poverty, and the legacy of urban change, which are still at the forefront for many Glaswegians. 

A special thanks to community partners, supporters and contributors: Old Ship Bank pub, Saltmarket | Spirit of Revolt Mitchell Library | Special Collections Mitchell Library | Pyramid Centre: Crescendo Choir, Knit & Knatter, Lunch Club, Feminist Bookgroup  | Kelvin Hall Museums & Archive | Gallery of Modern Art | Friends of Garnethill Gardens (FROGG) | Yorkhill Green Spaces Charity | Blackwood Housing | Charing Cross Housing Association | Sanctuary Homes | Ricefield Arts | Glasgow City Council’s Development and Regeneration Services | Glasgow School of Art | Community Connectors – Glasgow Council for Voluntary Sector | William Street Clinic.