Frank Moss Bennet (1874-1953):
Portrait, 1924
Framed (ref: 13)
Signed and dated
Oil on canvas, 48 3/4 x 32 5/8 in. (124 x 83 cm.)
See all works by Frank Moss Bennet oil
Overall dimensions in its original Chapman and Brothers polished fruitwood frame: 58 1/4 x 42 1/2 in. (148 x 108 cm.)
Provenance: The John Stewart Parry Collection
Frank Moss Bennett is best known for his genre and historical subjects;
though technically brilliant, these paintings appear today somewhat
dated and formulaic. This portrait, though evocative of a previous era,
retains all of its vitality. Whilst the artist is recorded as
undertaking portrait commissions (see National Portrait Gallery,
accession no. 1555), he rarely portrayed figures in contemporary dress.
The intimacy of the portrait suggests that it is possibly a friend or
family member. The sitter is fashionably dressed, wearing a high-cut
collar and a pale-coloured lounge suit popularised by the Prince of
Wales after the Great War.