Lemaître, Maurice, 1926-

Maurice Lemaître, born Moïse Bismuth in Paris in 1926, was a leading voice of the mainstream Lettrism movement in the 1950s and 1960s, and continues to be one of its most active and outspoken proponents to this day. Lemaître joined the Lettrism movement in 1949/1950, four years after it was founded by Isidore Isou. He produced several important theoretical works of the early 1950s, including Sistème de Notasion pour les lètries (1952), Qu'est-ce que le Lettrisme? (1954) and Bilan Lettriste (1955), as well as practical applications in experimental painting, music, book design, theater, and cinema. When Guy Debord led a schism away from the group around Isou in 1952, Lemaître became the leading spokesman of the movement’s “moderate” wing, which he defended through polemical engagements against Debord and the Lettrist (later the Situationist) International.

In addition to being a major theoretician and practicing artist, Lemaître became increasingly important as the movement’s publisher, not only editing but also financing the publication of the first Lettrist revues, including Front de la Jeunesse, Poésie nouvelle, and Ur, among others. He helped organize the first Lettrist exhibitions in the United States, and also provided support for the next generation of Lettrists, including Roland Sabatier and Alain Satié, at crucial points in their careers. The second series of Ur (1963-1967) was an important venue for Lettrist experimentation for such artists and became the launchpad for the Centre de Créativité.

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