Alexander McInnes Gardner was born in New Kilpatrick, Scotland on 21 September 1878. and was articled to A. Lindsay Miller in Glasgow from 1893 to 1898. He also attended Glasgow School of Art. He worked as an assistant to Malcolm Stark (c.1854-?) and Fred Rowntree (1860-1927) of Stark & Rowntree in 1898; to James Miller (1861-1947) from 1899 to 1901 and 1903 to 1905; and to F. Rowntree from 1901 to 1903. He commenced independent practice as an architect in Glasgow in 1905 and from 1905 to 1912 was in partnership with Thomas Andrew Millar (1880-1922). In 1913 he formed a short-lived partnership with Robert Whyte (1873-1949) as Gardner & Whyte. The partnership was dissolved in 1914. From c.1914 to c.1920 he was in partnership with George A Crawley.
Concurrent with his partnership with Millar, in 1910 Gardner appears to have appears to established another architectural practice, A. McInnes Gardner & Partners, [now McInnes Gardner] that specialised in the fitting out of ocean liners.
Gardner was elected a Licentiate of the Royal Institute of British Architects (LRIBA) in 1911. He died in Glasgow on 11 August 1934.
Gardner's practice continued following his death and from 1934 to 1968 established an international reputation for fitting out ocean liners including the Queen Mary, Mauritania, Queen Elizabeth, Canberra, and the Royal Yacht Britannia. Since the 1970s the firm has diversified into other sectors including the leisure, commercial and industrial sectors. Today [2021] the firm is known as McInnes Gardner.
Interior decorative architectural work for many large passenger liners owned by Canadian Pacific Steamship Co.; Union Steamship Co. of New Zealand, Ltd.; Nippon Yusen Kaisha, Japan; and other Companies (1906-28). Clydebank Public Library, 1911. [Source: Who's Who in Architecture 1923]
For a detailed list of architectural projects by Alexander McInnes Gardner from 1896 to 1934 see the Dictionary of Scottish Architects 1720-1980
Directory of British Architects 1834-1914. Compiled by Antonia Brodie, et al. Volume 1: A-K. London; New York: British Architectural Library, Royal Institute of British Architects/Continuum, 2001