Xavier Sager was a popular French artist whose work has been
catalogued at more than 3000 illustrations. Much of his work has been printed
as postcards. There are two different sets of dates as to his birth and death.
One declares he has been born in 1870 and died in 1930 (60 years old). Another
is he was born in 1881 and died in 1969 (88 years old). Same sources said he
was born in Austria (1870) and died in the United States (1930). There is
speculation there were two artists with the same name, hence the different
birth and death dates. This theory remains inconclusive due to insufficient of
evidence.
To continue with Sager’s alleged origins, same say he was a
native of Austria who moved to France before the Great War. The Great War ran
from June 2014 until November 2018; the United States joined the Allies in
April 2017. If born in 1870, he would
have been thirty by the time he arrived in Paris around 1900. Or born in 1881,
he would be nineteen by 1900, while living and sketching in Paris. According to
Alan Petrulis, “Paris at this time had a reputation for its fashion and its loose
morals, both of which Sager did his best to exploit,” (Petrulis). During the war
he sketched military postcards for the firm of A. Noyer. Noyer Studio, based in
Paris, was run by the photographer Alfred Noyer.
In Scientific American (October 2014) there
was a reprint of an article first published October 24, 1914. The article is
written, “By an Officer in the French Army — Special War Correspondent of the Scientific American.” His biography
states he is an, “artist as well as an officer.” (Schlenoff). The artwork
depicted with the article is attributed to Xavier Sager meaning the author of
this article is also Sager. This would indicate this officer is fluent in both
French and English. Depending on when Sager was born he would have been either
33 or 44 years old when serving in the French army.
Xavier Sager produced the postcard, “Strategy” (c. pre WW1); supposedly with H.G. Wells book, “Little Wars: a game for boys from twelve
years of age to one hundred and fifty and for that more intelligent sort of girl
who likes boys’ games and books,” in mind. (Man of Tin). The postcard image reveals
her ammunition is tiny hearts which she appears to be using to defeat or win over
the tiny men soldiers. Then there are the dead and dying men on the floor as if
she is toying with them as a proverbial Femme Fatale. This theme of risqué art is
carried over in Sager’s sculpture. Two pieces were produced in 1930, the year he
allegedly died. If the sculpture is by the same artist as the postcards than he
was born in 1881, unless he died the same year he cast the sculpture. The Sager
sculpture work gives credence to there being two artists of the same name.
