The Sculpture Of Charles Sargeant Jagger

by Ann Compton

"While his career was relatively short - it spanned just 16 years - Charles Sargeant Jagger (1885-1934) established himself as one of the leading war memorial sculptors in the years following 1918, and his contribution to the history of British sculpture should not be underestimated." "His military figures display Jagger's artistic motivations. In contrast to the fashion for idealism, the features of the models are rugged and workman-like: characteristics which created a 'realist' label for the artist. However, these pieces show more than realism at work. Uniform and equipment convey symbolic meaning and their strikingly symmetrical poses reflect the influence of primitive art. The combination of realism and primitivism is evident throughout Jagger's body of work, from the war memorials to his later creations that included religious works, portrait statues and decorative architectural schemes." "Often criticised for not being modernist, Jagger's work is also consistently admired - his