Godfrey Blount was heavily inspired by the principles of William Morris, John Ruskin and the Arts & Crafts Society which, together with his strong religious beliefs, fuelled his desire to return to a simpler, more traditional way of life.
Working as an artist across multiple mediums, his principal legacy was the establishment of the Haslemere Peasant Industries. He studied under the artist Hubert Von Herkomer, whose painting prioritised realistic portrayal of the lives of the poor. Perhaps this realism and sympathy for the working classes directed Blount away from his public school, Oxbridge educated upbringing towards a life amongst the rural poor.
Having moved in 1896 to the Surrey village of Haslemere with his wife Ethel, the following year the couple were founding figures of the Haslemere Peasant Industries artistic community. The Industries rejected mass production in favour of rural craft and aimed to create an environment in which work and leisure aligned with philanthropic principles and traditional values. The primary motive was teaching forgotten crafts to the community rather than profit generation. The organisation also acted as an umbrella body, heading up small workshops which employed local craftspeople, as well as maintaining a small shop in London. Such was the quality of their work that three embroidery hangings are held today in the V&A.
Blount was a prolific publisher, in 1899 releasing his most notable work, the design manual Arbor Vitae. During the First World War he had a printing press with which he produced pamphlets as well as greeting cards and decorative plates. Blount remained true to his principles and an active member of his community even in later years, in 1927 founding the Supernatural Society which sought to fight materialism with the weapons of Christianity and the beauty of living simply.
Illustrated: Interior of the Weaving House FOUNDED BY Ethel and Godfrey Blount on Foundry Road, Haslemere, Surrey, photographed in 1902.
