Ghost Signs of Glasgow

I have been photographing ghost signs in Glasgow before I was aware that the term existed.


My earliest picture is of the beautifully hand-painted Seafesh Fish Shop sign in Skirving Street, Shawlands, a delight compared to the many modern plastic and vinyl shop signs, a perfect example of the sign-writers art and in lovely condition in 2007 but in a poor state of repair in 2020.


Another sign which is fading away is the ‘Everything in this window glass’ sign in Renfrew Street at Charing Cross, unlike some ghost signs, protected by being covered and revealed by building work this one has always been open to the elements - I have included before and after pictures to show the difference a few years make.


One of my other early ghost sign pictures was of a promtional window decal for Kodak film on a window of a chemists in Broomhill, although the shop is still there the sign has been removed. The Finnieston area of Glasgow is now a rich source of ghost signs, with some new businesses making a feature of and restoring revealed signs.