Philip Mairet
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Philip Mairet (; full name: Philippe Auguste Mairet; 1886–1975) was a British designer, writer and journalist. He had a wide range of interest: crafts,
Alfred Adler Alfred Adler ( , ; 7 February 1870 – 28 May 1937) was an Austrian medical doctor, psychotherapist, and founder of the school of individual psychology. His emphasis on the importance of feelings of belonging, family constellation and birth order ...
and psychiatry, and
Social Credit Social credit is a distributive philosophy of political economy developed by C. H. Douglas. Douglas attributed economic downturns to discrepancies between the cost of goods and the compensation of the workers who made them. To combat what he ...
. He translated major figures including
Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was one of the key figures in the philosophy of existentialism (and phenomenology), a French playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and litera ...
. He wrote biographies of
Sir Patrick Geddes Sir Patrick Geddes (2 October 1854 – 17 April 1932) was a British biologist, sociologist, Comtean positivist, geographer, philanthropist and pioneering town planner. He is known for his innovative thinking in the fields of urban planning ...
and
A. R. Orage Alfred Richard Orage (22 January 1873 – 6 November 1934) was a British influential figure in socialist politics and modernist culture, now best known for editing the magazine ''The New Age'' before the First World War. While he was working as a ...
, with both of whom he was closely associated, as well as of
John Middleton Murry John Middleton Murry (6 August 1889 – 12 March 1957) was an English writer. He was a prolific author, producing more than 60 books and thousands of essays and reviews on literature, social issues, politics, and religion during his lifetime. ...
. As editor of the ''
New English Weekly ''The New English Weekly'' was a leading British review of "Public Affairs, Literature and the Arts." It was founded in April 1932 by Alfred Richard Orage shortly after his return from Paris. One of Britain's most prestigious editors, Orage had ed ...
'' in the 1930s, he championed both
Christian socialism Christian socialism is a religious and political philosophy that blends Christianity and socialism, endorsing left-wing politics and socialist economics on the basis of the Bible and the teachings of Jesus. Many Christian socialists believe capi ...
, as it was known at the time, and ideas on agriculture that would come together later as
organic farming Organic farming, also known as ecological farming or biological farming,Labelling, article 30 o''Regulation (EU) 2018/848 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 on organic production and labelling of organic products and re ...
.


Early life

He was born in
Islington Islington () is a district in the north of Greater London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the ar ...
, London, on 27 April 1886, the son of Charles Sylvain Mairet, a Swiss watchmaker, and his wife Mary Ann Goldsmith. He was educated at a
board school School boards were public bodies in England and Wales between 1870 and 1902, which established and administered elementary schools. School boards were created in boroughs and parishes under the Elementary Education Act 1870 following campaignin ...
and the
Stationers' Company's School The Stationers' Company's School was a former boys' grammar school, then a comprehensive school in Hornsey, north London. History The school started as the Stationers' Company's Foundation School. The Master from 1858 to 1882 was Alexander Kenne ...
. Mairet studied at the
Hornsey School of Art Hornsey College of Art (a.k.a. Hornsey School of Art) was a college in Crouch End in the London Borough of Haringey, England. The HCA was "an iconic British art institution, renowned for its experimental and progressive approach to art and design ...
, becoming a draughtsman and designer of
stained glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...
. Failing to enter the
Royal Academy Schools The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its purpo ...
, he took a job in advertising. He went to work in
graphic design Graphic design is a profession, academic discipline and applied art whose activity consists in projecting visual communications intended to transmit specific messages to social groups, with specific objectives. Graphic design is an interdiscipli ...
for
Charles Robert Ashbee Charles Robert Ashbee (17 May 1863 – 23 May 1942) was an English architect and designer who was a prime mover of the Arts and Crafts movement, which took its craft ethic from the works of John Ruskin and its co-operative structure from the soc ...
and joined his
Arts and Crafts A handicraft, sometimes more precisely expressed as artisanal handicraft or handmade, is any of a wide variety of types of work where useful and decorative objects are made completely by one’s hand or by using only simple, non-automated re ...
community at
Chipping Campden Chipping Campden is a market town in the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, England. It is notable for its terraced High Street, dating from the 14th century to the 17th century. ("Chipping" is from Old English ''cēping'', 'market', 'market- ...
.


Marriage, Mitrinović and Ditchling

Mairet married in 1913, and with his wife Ethel moved away from Chipping Campden. They lived in a cottage at Shottery: Ethel worked as a weaver, and Mairet for
Burlison and Grylls Burlison and Grylls is an English company who produced stained glass windows from 1868 onwards. The company of Burlison and Grylls was founded in 1868 at the instigation of the architects George Frederick Bodley and Thomas Garner. Both John Bu ...
. In 1914 Mairet met and was influenced by
Dimitrije Mitrinović Dimitrije "Mita" Mitrinović (Serbian Cyrillic: Димитрије Мита Митриновић; 21 October 1887 – 28 August 1953) was a Bosnian Serb philosopher, poet, revolutionary, mystic, theoretician of modern painting and traveler. Biog ...
, attached to the Serbian Delegation. In the summer of 1915 he prepared wall lecture diagrams for a summer course on ''The War: Its Social Tasks and Problems'' at
King's College, London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...
. The course was given by
Patrick Geddes Sir Patrick Geddes (2 October 1854 – 17 April 1932) was a British biologist, sociologist, Comtean positivist, geographer, philanthropist and pioneering town planner. He is known for his innovative thinking in the fields of urban planning ...
and
Gilbert Slater Gilbert may refer to: People and fictional characters *Gilbert (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters *Gilbert (surname), including a list of people Places Australia * Gilbert River (Queensland) * Gilbert River (South A ...
. At the end of 1915 Mairet joined the
Red Cross Society The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, the world's largest group of non-governmental organizations working on humanitarian aid, is composed of the following bodies: *The ''International Committee of the Red Cross'' (ICRC), a comm ...
. In ''An Autobiographical Compilation'', he described his time serving in the Red Cross personnel in France, and catching up with Mitrinović when on leave in England. In 1917 he had a revelatory experience, after which he described himself as a disciple, and resigned from the Red Cross. Mairet and his wife moved to
Ditchling Ditchling is a village and civil parish in the Lewes District of East Sussex, England. The village is contained within the boundaries of the South Downs National Park; the order confirming the establishment of the park was signed in Ditchling. ...
, Sussex, where they settled. Mairet took on work as an agricultural labourer, on the farm that
Hilary Pepler Harry Douglas Clark Pepler (1878–1951), known as Hilary Pepler, was an English printer, writer and poet. He was an associate of both Eric Gill and G. K. Chesterton, working on publications in which they had an interest. He was also a founder w ...
and his wife had bought on the edge of Ditchling Common. In so doing, Mairet was avoiding conscripted military service. Eventually he was discovered, and enrolled in the
Royal Sussex Regiment The Royal Sussex Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was in existence from 1881 to 1966. The regiment was formed in 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 35th (Royal Sussex) Regiment of Foot ...
. He was sentenced by a
court-martial A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...
having refused to obey orders, and spent a period in
Wormwood Scrubs Wormwood Scrubs, known locally as The Scrubs (or simply Scrubs), is an open space in Old Oak Common located in the north-eastern corner of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in west London. It is the largest open space in the borough, ...
as a
conscientious objector A conscientious objector (often shortened to conchie) is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, or religion. The term has also been extended to object ...
. He was released in 1919, and returned to Ditchling where Ethel was a successful weaver; there Mitrinović visited. From 1921 to 1924 Mairet worked as an actor at the
Old Vic Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary * Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Ma ...
. In 1926 he turned to journalism.


The ''New English Weekly'' circle

Mairet began going to the editorial meetings of
A. R. Orage Alfred Richard Orage (22 January 1873 – 6 November 1934) was a British influential figure in socialist politics and modernist culture, now best known for editing the magazine ''The New Age'' before the First World War. While he was working as a ...
after World War I, where the so-called ''New Age'' circle attended, ''
The New Age ''The New Age'' was a British weekly magazine (1894–1938), inspired by Fabian socialism, and credited as a major influence on literature and the arts during its heyday from 1907 to 1922, when it was edited by Alfred Richard Orage. It published ...
'' being Orage's magazine. In 1922 Orage quit as its editor, going abroad to study at and work in the Gurdjieff Institute. From 1930 to 1934, Mairet edited with W. Travers Symons ''Purpose'', a quarterly magazine founded in 1929, mixing
Social Credit Social credit is a distributive philosophy of political economy developed by C. H. Douglas. Douglas attributed economic downturns to discrepancies between the cost of goods and the compensation of the workers who made them. To combat what he ...
ideas with
Alfred Adler Alfred Adler ( , ; 7 February 1870 – 28 May 1937) was an Austrian medical doctor, psychotherapist, and founder of the school of individual psychology. His emphasis on the importance of feelings of belonging, family constellation and birth order ...
's. In 1930 Orage was rebuffed when he offered to return to ''The New Age'', by the controlling
Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
s who now ran it, known as the " Chandos Group", who were
Christian socialist Christian socialism is a religious and political philosophy that blends Christianity and socialism, endorsing left-wing politics and socialist economics on the basis of the Bible and the teachings of Jesus. Many Christian socialists believe cap ...
s. During the 1930s, there were changes in Mairet's life. His marriage broke down; he threw off the influence of Mitrinović; and he changed the spelling of his first name from Philippe to Philip. Orage set up the ''
New English Weekly ''The New English Weekly'' was a leading British review of "Public Affairs, Literature and the Arts." It was founded in April 1932 by Alfred Richard Orage shortly after his return from Paris. One of Britain's most prestigious editors, Orage had ed ...
'' in 1932. He died suddenly in 1934, leaving the publication in limbo. The editorial line, as legacy from Orage, was Social Credit in the sense of the Economic Freedom League, a faction led by H. E. B. Ludlam; and approval of
Oswald Mosley Sir Oswald Ernald Mosley, 6th Baronet (16 November 1896 – 3 December 1980) was a British politician during the 1920s and 1930s who rose to fame when, having become disillusioned with mainstream politics, he turned to fascism. He was a member ...
. Mairet, in 1934 the literary editor of the ''New English Weekly'', emerged as its editor as a compromise candidate. One group of Social Credit advocates wanted to exclude another group, of supporters of Mitrinović. Mairet was identified more with a third force, the Chandos Group. They took their name from the Chandos Restaurant in
St Martin's Lane St Martin's Lane is a street in the City of Westminster, which runs from the church of St Martin-in-the-Fields, after which it is named, near Trafalgar Square northwards to Long Acre. At its northern end, it becomes Monmouth Street. St Martin ...
, where they met. The Chandos Group overlapped the Mitrinović group: there had been a shared interest in the journal ''Purpose''; and the theories of Adler were also a common factor. W. Travers Symons introduced Mairet to T. S. Eliot, who was holding the ring. In practical terms the Chandos Group were already deeply involved in producing the ''New English Weekly'', and were sympathetic to Social Credit.


Associations

The Chandos group was founded by Mitrinović, meeting for the first time on the last day of the 1926 General Strike. It later centred on
Maurice Reckitt Maurice Benington Reckitt (19 June 1888 – 11 January 1980) was a leading English Anglo-Catholic and Christian socialist writer. He edited ''Christendom: A Journal of Christian Sociology'' from 1931 to 1950. He founded the charity Christendom T ...
, with Mairet, W. Travers Symons, V. A. Demant, and Alan Porter.Jason Harding, ''The Criterion: Cultural Politics and Periodical Networks in Inter-War Britain'' (2002), pp. 191-2. Albert Newsome, Alan Porter and Egerton Swan attended, while working up ''Coal: A Challenge to the National Conscience''. Others were B. T. Boothroyd, Hilderic Edwin Cousens, Geoffrey Davis the
Distributist Distributism is an economic theory asserting that the world's productive assets should be widely owned rather than concentrated. Developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, distributism was based upon Catholic social teaching princ ...
, and R. S. J. Rand.
G. D. H. Cole George Douglas Howard Cole (25 September 1889 – 14 January 1959) was an English political theorist, economist, and historian. As a believer in common ownership of the means of production, he theorised guild socialism (production organised ...
, T. S. Eliot and
Lewis Mumford Lewis Mumford (October 19, 1895 – January 26, 1990) was an American historian, sociologist, philosopher of technology, and literary critic. Particularly noted for his study of cities and urban architecture, he had a broad career as a wr ...
were occasionally at the meetings, which occurred once every two weeks. Mairet belonged to other small societies and discussion groups of the period before
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. Those included
Oldham's Moot Joseph Houldsworth Oldham (1874–1969), known as J. H. or Joe, was a Scottish missionary in India, who became a significant figure in Christian ecumenism, though never ordained in the United Free Church as he had wished. Life J.H. Oldham was the ...
. Mairet wrote a piece "The Gospel, Drama, and Society" for Oldham's ''Christian News-Letter'' series; Pepler wrote a reply to it on "training the imagination". Mairet was an early supporter of
George Orwell Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950), better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English novelist, essayist, journalist, and critic. His work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to totalitar ...
, who wrote to the ''New English Weekly'' in May 1932, and was given a book by Karl Adam to review. He wrote in positive and comprehending terms about ''
Homage to Catalonia ''Homage to Catalonia'' is George Orwell's personal account of his experiences and observations fighting in the Spanish Civil War for the POUM militia of the Republican army. Published in 1938 (about a year before the war ended) with little com ...
'' and Orwell's approach. He was a friend and long-time correspondent of T. S. Eliot, who dedicated his ''Notes towards the Definition of Culture'' to him. The work's title harked back to a seminar series Eliot and Mairet had run in the winter 1943/4, at St Anne's House, under the title "Towards the Definition of a Culture". The House was attached to
St Anne's Church, Soho Saint Anne's Church serves in the Church of England the Soho section of London. It was consecrated on 21 March 1686 by Bishop Henry Compton as the parish church of the new civil and ecclesiastical parish of St Anne, created from part of the pari ...
, bombed out in two air raids in autumn 1940. In December 1938 the magazine ''New Pioneer'' was launched, a
far right Far-right politics, also referred to as the extreme right or right-wing extremism, are political beliefs and actions further to the right of the left–right political spectrum than the standard political right, particularly in terms of being ...
publication associated with
Viscount Lymington A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...
. Mairet was one of the group of its supporters, with John Beckett,
Ben Greene Ben Greene (28 December 1901 – October 1978) was a British Labour Party politician and pacifist. He was interned during the Second World War because of his fascist associations and appealed to the Judicial Committee of the House of Lords aga ...
,
Anthony Ludovici Anthony Mario Ludovici MBE (8 January 1882 – 3 April 1971) was a British philosopher, sociologist, social critic and polyglot. He is known as a proponent of aristocracy and anti-egalitarianism, and in the early 20th century was a leading ...
and many of those who formed the
British People's Party (1939) The British People's Party (BPP) was a British far-right political party founded in 1939 and led by ex- British Union of Fascists (BUF) member and Labour Party Member of Parliament John Beckett. Origins The BPP had its roots in the journal ...
shortly afterwards. He joined
Rolf Gardiner Henry Rolf Gardiner (5 November 1902 – 26 November 1971) was an English rural revivalist, helping to bring back folk dance styles including Morris dancing and sword dancing. He founded groups significant in the British history of organic far ...
's ''Kinship in Husbandry'' group in 1941. For Walter Moberly's Christian Frontier Council, Mairet edited ''The Frontier'' (1951). Also for the Christian Frontier Council, he organised a symposium ''Christianity and Psychiatry'', and edited its proceedings as ''Christian Essays in Psychiatry'' (1956).


Works

Mairet did the drawings for Ashbee's re-design of the Norman Chapel House in
Broad Campden Broad Campden is a small village in Gloucestershire, England, with a church and pub, and notable for its beauty and fine walking trails. History The village is the site of the listed partly 12th century Norman Chapel House that was renovated by C ...
, and the 1907 commission for
Thomas Shaw-Hellier Colonel Thomas Bradney Shaw-Hellier (1836–1910), 4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards, of The Wodehouse near Wombourne, Staffordshire, and of Villa San Giorgio (now Hotel Ashby) in Taormina, Sicily, was Director of the Royal Military School of Musi ...
's Villa San Giorgio in
Taormina Taormina ( , , also , ; scn, Taurmina) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Messina, on the east coast of the island of Sicily, Italy. Taormina has been a tourist destination since the 19th century. Its beaches on ...
.
Fiona MacCarthy Fiona MacCarthy (23 January 1940 – 29 February 2020) was a British biographer and cultural historian best known for her studies of 19th- and 20th-century art and design. Early life and education Fiona MacCarthy was born in Sutton, Surrey in ...
, the biographer of the architect, judges it "the most impressive of Ashbee's remaining buildings"; it survives as the Hotel Ashbee. Mairet also illustrated Ashbee's ''Conradin: A Philosophical Ballad'' (1908).


Biography

*''A. R. Orage: a memoir'' (1936) *''Pioneer of Sociology: The Life and Letters of Patrick Geddes'' (1957) *''John Middleton Murry'' (1958)


Essays and pamphlets

*''An essay on crafts & obedience'' (1918), with Hilary Pepler *''The Idea Behind Craftsmanship'' (1928) *''Aristocracy and the Meaning of Class Rule – An Essay upon Aristocracy Past and Future'' (1931) *''The Frontier'' (1951) *''Christian Essays in Psychiatry'' (1956) editor


Social Credit

*''The Douglas Manual: Being a Recension of Passages from the Works of Major C. H. Douglas, Outlining Social Credit'' (Stanley Nott, 1934) editor


Alfred Adler

*''ABC of Adler's psychology'' (1928) *''Alfred Adler Problems of Neurosis'' (1929) editor, case histories


Translations

Mairet's numerous translations to English included ''L'existentialisme est un humanisme'' by Jean-Paul Sartre, and ''Calvin'' by François Wendel (1905–1972).


Family

The woman Mairet married,
Ethel Mary Partridge Ethel Mary Partridge, Ethel Mary Mairet RDI, or Ethel Mary Coomaraswamy (17 February 1872 – 18 November 1952) was a British hand loom weaver, significant in the development of the craft during the first half of the twentieth century. Early l ...
, was an influential
hand loom A loom is a device used to weave cloth and tapestry. The basic purpose of any loom is to hold the warp threads under tension to facilitate the interweaving of the weft threads. The precise shape of the loom and its mechanics may vary, but ...
weaver and teacher. She was born in 1872 and, in 1903, married
Ananda Coomaraswamy Ananda Kentish Muthu Coomaraswamy ( ta, ஆனந்த குமாரசுவாமி, ''Ānanda Kentiś Muthū Kumāraswāmī''; si, ආනන්ද කුමාරස්වාමි ''Ānanda Kumārasvāmī''; 22 August 1877 − 9 Septem ...
, the geologist and art historian. Mairet worked on their house and became Coomaraswamy's secretary. The Coomaraswamy marriage broke down, and the couple divorced in 1910.


Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mairet, Philip 1886 births 1975 deaths British male journalists Organic farmers