A LIVING, breathing work of art, the clean lines and modernist style of Glasgow School Of Art are as relevant today as they were when the building emerged among soot-covered tenements in the latter years of the 1800s.

Although visitors from around the world visit the city to admire the work of one of the most creative figures in the 20th century, at home it seems Charles Rennie Mackintosh is often unappreciated.

That is why organisers of the second Creative Mackintosh Festival want to appeal to Glaswegians to cast a fresh eye across the architect and designer's legacy.

"There is an emphasis on trying to attract young people and people who would not necessarily think of themselves as Mackintosh fans," says Susan Garnsworthy, project manager of the Glasgow Mackintosh Group.

"When I first took up this post two years ago a couple of people who ran Mackintosh venues said they felt his work did not seem to resonate with people in Glasgow.

"They think he is just that man who designed the little pink glass rose or a range of jewellery, which of course he didn't. I tried that test on taxi drivers on odd occasions and they all agreed Mackintosh is important, although most do not seem fond of his work.

"It seems there is a job to be done about letting people in Glasgow know how really significant he is."

Highlights of the festival include new acquisitions on display at Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, a photographic exhibition at the Lighthouse and the first show in Glasgow by Archie Forrest, a graduate of Glasgow School Of Art, at the Willow Tea Room.

Mackintosh's love of nature, which found its way into so many of his design motifs, is celebrated in From Garden To Garment, a show at the Hill House, Helensburgh, with work by Sofia Perina-Miller, and there is an embroidery masterclass at House For An Art Lover in Bellahouston Park.

Children's events feature puppet making and Japanese kite making at Scotland Street School Museum as part of their Taste Of Japan weekend, a nod to the Eastern influences that inspired Mackintosh, and a teddy bear tea party at Kelvingrove.

There is plenty for lovers of Mackintosh, including Margaret Macdonald Mackintosh: A Reappraisal, in which experts will explore her achievements and reputation through talks and access to original work.

And there is the Mackintosh Lecture by Professor Andy MacMillan, former head of the Mackintosh School of Architecture, at Queen's Cross Church, Maryhill.

"He was the most amazing architect, designer and artist," says Ms Garnsworthy.

"The fact he covered all three areas is amazing - he was a true innovator and a real creative spirit.

"Although many of the guides written about him put the work in context, he defies context.

"Academics say you could put him in Art Nouveau, but you could then move him on in the watercolours he did in the early 1920s to Art Deco. He is almost outside definition, a one-off.

"Neil Baxter, from the Royal Incorporation Of Architects In Scotland, said Mackintosh was truly Scotland's greatest architect and I think it was Charles Jencks who said Glasgow School Of Art is the single most important building of the 20th century."

She adds: "Mackintosh had such a fresh vision and where did it come from? He was the son of a policeman, he grew up in Glasgow but he did just have that fresh approach.

"I think that is why he resonates so strongly, and also that in Glasgow you have this concentration of the key buildings he built.

"Whereas the works of art can go on tour, the buildings can't so you have to come to Glasgow to see them."

The festival coincides with the 40th anniversary celebrations of the Charles Rennie Mackintosh Society, which start on October 4 with Friday Night is Mackintosh Music Night at Queen's Cross Church.

Hosted by BBC presenter Judith Ralston - a former opera singer - it will feature performances by recital pianist Elaine Gould, Scots baritone Paul Keohone, with Robert Sutherland, Maria Callas's accompanist.

A music cabinet designed by Mackintosh, currently at the Lighthouse, will be on show at the church for the first two weeks of this month.

It was designed for Ellen Pickering, the daughter of John Anderson, the owner of Scotland's largest department store the Royal Polytechnic (now Debenhams) in Argyle Street, and shown in Mackintosh's watercolour design of 1898.

Helen McCook, a needlework specialist who worked on the lace for the Duchess Of Cambridge's wedding dress, hosts a talk on the Missing Mackintosh Textile.

And an exhibition by Francis Law, the Architecture Of Nature, links the works of Law with Mackintosh.

"I think people tend not to go off and explore their own city," says Stuart Robertson, director of the Charles Rennie Mackintosh Society.

"The success of Doors Open Day is a good example of how focused people can be. They make targets of things they want to see."

angela.mcmanus@ heraldandtimes.co.uk