POSTCARD ARTIST FRANK FELLER AND MUSCULAR CHRISTIANITY

 

The work of postcard artist Frank Feller(1848-1908) often celebrated the curious Victorian concept of “Muscular Christianity”  popularized by Thomas Hughes’ novel Tom Brown’s School Days (1857).  As a young man, Swiss-born painter Frank Feller (1848-1908) studied art in Geneva, Munich, and Paris.  By 1871 he had moved abroad to continue his studies in London. Ten years later, Feller’s first book illustrations appeared. In 1882, Frank Feller married Christine Heuser after becoming a naturalized British citizen. The couple had eight children.  Although primarily known as a military artist, Feller also produced postcard series for Raphael Tuck and Sons as well as Hildesheimer and Faulkner. I first noticed the influence of Muscular Christianity on his cards published by  Raphael Tuck.

During the Victorian era, England’s Christians were concerned that “Puritan influences” had caused a decline in masculinity among British men. Muscular Christianity viewed men’s bodies as gifts from God. As such, they should be employed wisely and with great purpose. First, men must condition their bodies to be physically fit. Participating in sports was believed to subdue men’s “baser instincts”. Once they were fit, young men were to use their strength to protect the weak (especially against bullies). They were to spend their lives advancing “righteous” causes like the Christian religion. Finally, these manly men must do their part to “subdue the earth” -especially by joining the military to promote British Imperialism.  We may find this a bit comical today, but in Feller’s time, Muscular Christianity was an admirable way to approach life. Whether consciously or unconsciously, during his career, Frank Feller focused on the intersection of military art, sports and Muscular Christianity.

Prior to the golden age of postcards, Feller’s “manly” art appeared in fiction for young boys and in sporting magazines such as The Badminton Magazine and The Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News. More mainstream publications such as The Strand and The Idler also published his art. In The Boy’s Own Paper, Frank Feller’s artwork subtly promoted Muscular Christianity among public school youth. These publications featured stories of manly men overcoming danger and engaging in chivalrous behavior while traveling in foreign lands or participating in exotic sports like mountaineering. 

Frank Feller produced postcard series for Raphael Tuck and Sons titled “Life in Russia”, “Life in Switzerland”, “Life in Spain”, “Life in China”, and “In the Tyrol.” Feller also produced watercolors for three Tuck postcard series titled “Soldiers”, “Cowboys & Indians”, and “Angling”. Many of these cards focus on dramatic scenes of masculine bravado.

The pinnacle of Frank Feller’s career came when he had three paintings accepted for exhibitions at the Royal Academy between 1883 and 1895. In 1908, Feller died of a heart attack in his home at 8 Wetherby Terrace, a posh neighborhood in the Earls Court section of London. His obituary can be found in The Sphere (March 21, 1908 issue) and in The Boy’s Own Paper.