Gentleman Sharpening a Quill by Frank Moss Bennett 1874 - 1972

Frank Moss Bennett was a painter, decorator and designer of costume figures. Bennett showed a keen talent for painting at an early age, and attended the Slade School of Art in London. There he studied under renowned artists including Henry Tonks, Philip Wilson Steer and John Singer Sargent. In 1894, Bennett attended the St. John School of Art, before joining the Royal Academy School of Art in 1896.

Bennett was one of the last of the fine figure painters in Britain and over the course of his career became a specialist in period interiors. He depicted appealing conversation pieces of the romantic period of the mid-nineteenth century which were hugely popular with art collectors at the time. Bennett’s superb technical abilities were demonstrated in his knowledge and accuracy of the costumes worn by his figures and the settings in which they were represented.