First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said the fire at Glasgow School of Art is "heartbreaking".

"The fire has been a devastating blaze, much worse than the one that took hold of the Mackintosh building four years ago.

"The damage is severe and extensive."

"My heart goes out to everybody associated with the art school."

Richard Leonard said images from the Glasgow School of Art and ABC music venue fire were difficult to watch.

He said: "These are iconic buildings in Scotland’s biggest city, and buildings I have often visited.

“On behalf of the Labour Party, I would like to extend my thanks to the emergency services who reacted with such professionalism on Friday night and worked tirelessly through the night to save these buildings.

“Hard questions will be asked as to why and how the Mackintosh building has now suffered two serious fires within four years, in the meantime we can be relived that there appears to have been no serious casualties.”

Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has arrived at the Glasgow School of Art site to witness the devastation caused by the fire

Image source, PA

Image source, pa

Scottish architectural expert Neil Baxter said: "This is the most important building in the city by far.

"It has previously been voted as the most important building in the UK and that does not underestimate its significance.

"It is a building of world importance. It influenced the evolution of 20th Century architecture across the globe and its loss is just a tragedy for all of Glasgow."

"It is not simply about bricks and mortar it is about an artistic achievement from an artist at the height of his powers."

Scottish artist Alison Watt, who studied at Glasgow School of Art, said it was "too painful" to watch it ravaged again by fire.

She said the building was not only a "remarkable physical presence" but it also represented "a powerful idea".

"So many of the artists I know and admire, whose work is shown all over then world, spent their formative years on the art school.

"It is very difficult to describe and put into words how it feels to study at Glasgow School of Art.

"It is very much an emotional as well as an intellectual connection we have."

"It is symbolic and that's why the devastation we all feel is so great," she said.

"I've watched as the restoration went up, and now it's come down," says university researcher Maria Papanatsiou.

She lives round the corner from the building and spoke of her shock and sadness as Glaswegians are coming to terms with the fact that one of their most famous buildings has, once again, been ravaged by a fire.

Image source, PA

Artist Alison Watt - herself an alumni of the school - said her heart was breaking.

Travis singer Fran Healy said he could not believe the building was on fire again.

Image source, epa

A massive fire has devastated Glasgow's famous art school building for the second time in four years.

• Flames ripped through the celebrated Mackintosh building after it caught fire at about 23:20 on Friday.
• At one point 120 firefighters and 20 fire engines were at the scene
• Firefighters used water from the River Clyde to tackle the blaze.
• The fire service said the fire had caused "extensive damage" to the historic building but had now been largely contained
• They said it ripped through every floor of the school of art
• Our reporter Catriona Renton described it as "a shell of a building"
• It is not known how or where the fire started
• Neighbouring buildings including the ABC music venue have also been damaged
• The UK government has promised to help with restoration
• Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon will visit the site soon

The art school is regarded by many as Charles Rennie Mackintosh's greatest work. Completed in 1909, it's a working art school as well as a work of art. Restoration of the building after the fire of 2014 has been painstaking.

Image source, MCATEER PHOTOGRAPH

Image source, Glasgow School of Art

The library - completely devastated - has been reconstructed in the same wood the designer first used. Books have been sourced from collections around the world, fittings and furniture recreated.

Image source, PA/GSA

Brad Pitt and Peter Capaldi - who once studied there - are among those who gave their support to a world wide campaign to raise the £30m required. The project was due to be completed in February 2019 with staff and students on campus due to move back later in the year.

Stuart Robertson, the director of the Charles Rennie Mackintosh Society, said it was "unbelievable".

"It is like deja vu from four years ago," he said.

"Last weekend was a joyous occasion, we were celebrating Mackintosh's 150th birthday and the rebirth of the Willow Tea Rooms in Sauchiehall Street, the Hill House in Helensburgh is about to have major restoration and we were looking forward to the reopening of this building after four years since the last fire."

Mr Robertson said he had been in the building a few weeks ago to look at how the restoration was progressing.

He said the famous "hen-run" had been restored, work on the library was well under way and the studios "looked amazing".

"This is like a nightmare," he said.

"I can't put into words how heartbroken I feel."

Architect Alan Dunlop, an alumnus of the Glasgow School of Art, told BBC Radio Scotland that he learned of the fire when friends in the United States began contacting him at 04:00.

"I thought they'd sent me a mistake - they'd regurgitated something from four years ago. I couldn't believe that it had happened so soon," he said.

Image source, Getty Images

He said photos posted online suggest the internationally-recognised building has been "completely gutted".

"I can't see any restoration possible for the building itself but I hope something can be saved and it can be brought back into life," he added.

Catriona Renton
BBC Scotland reporter

I'm afraid the famous school of art building behind me is just a shell of a building.

It was due to have reopened next year after a devastating fire four years ago.

There was a multi-million pound project, with big names such a Brad Pitt and Peter Capaldi, willing this place to open again and now this has happened.

The MP for Glasgow Central praised the work done by the emergency services and described the fire as a "huge blow" for staff and students at the art school.

Unlike four years ago, art students were not using the now fire-ravaged building for their degree work.

Graduating student exhibitions took place at the nearby McLellan Galleries and the Glasgow School of Art's Reid Building.

The devastating fire that engulfed the Glasgow School of Art has sparked shock in Glasgow, across Scotland and around the world.

"This is a very sad morning in the city of Glasgow," said Nicola Sturgeon.

Image source, PA

Scotland's former makar, Liz Lochhead, who studied at the art school, told the BBC she was "emotional" at the news.

"When you think of Grenfell you feel anger as well as grief," she said.

"With this, you feel great bafflement as if the god of fire is telling us, you cannot steal back from us something we have earmarked."