Scottish architect and designer Charles Rennie Mackintosh is known for his construction projects in Scotland, most notably the Glasgow School of Art, which is considered his outstanding achievement. Mackintosh received his first commission in continental Europe from Munich. Hugo Bruckmann, the publisher of the influential journal Dekorative Kunst or ‘Decorative Art’, had been made aware of Mackintosh by an article in The Studio magazine. As a result, he designed parts of a dining room set for Bruckmann comprising cabinets, a side table, doors, and wall decoration. Only the tall cabinet, which is regarded as a sort of prototype, has survived. This piece of furniture reminiscent of a secretaire is characterized by its reduced design and lack of ornamentation. The only exception is the two door panels made of chased metal, which were probably made by Mackintosh’s wife Margaret MacDonald Mackintosh. It’s no surprise that the cabinet was designed for a client from Munich, for Munich was the center of the German reform movement in the early 20th century, culminating in the founding of Deutscher Werkbund – the German Association of Craftspeople – in 1907. Die Neue Sammlung attaches particular importance to the cabinet in this context, since the museum itself goes back to the reformist ideas surrounding the association. These ideas had in turn been inspired by the British Arts and Crafts movement, which also influenced Mackintosh’s work.