Joseph Philippe

Born in 1902 in Lille.

He works in the beginning from 1922 in the atelier of architect Deglane. He is introduced to Dom Bellot by his uncle, Père Dehau. In 1926 Dom Bellot takes Philippe on a tour on all his Dutch work. They stay in close contact by writing each other a lot of letters. After his graduation as an architect Philippe is hired by Bellot at his Wisques atelier (May 1, 1930). Philippe is given the task Henk van de Leur did at Oosterhout. He is charge of the atelier when Bellot is outside the country. In 1939 Joseph Philippe is mobilised by the French army and has to stop his work as an architect. After the war he has been in Canada to help the completion of the St. Joseph Oratory at Montreal.

In 1945 Philippe starts his own atelier in Saint Omer. In the years 1946-1950 he rebuilt and restored many churches in the Saint-Omer region. The new east-wing of the St. Pauls abbey at Wisques (1960) is made by him too.

In Senegal he designed the abbey Keur-Moussa in the concrete-style of Bellot. (a picture of the church is shown at the left-bottom of this page)

Next to many religious work he built also many schools, hospitals and town-halls.

Philippe died in the year 2000.

We know he has designed:

Saint Martin in Landrethun-le-nord (first project as an solo architect)

Church Imaculée Conception at Hazebrouck (1948)

Saint Jacques at Enguinegatte

Monastere Benedictines du Calvaire at Saint-Jean-de-Braye (1950)

Expanding abbaye St. Paul at Wisques (1960) (new chapel, library)

Abbey Keur-Moussa in Senegal