Unexpected chess painting

[Harry Duff]

Looks like FM Bennett, or someone reproducing his artwork or style. The link below is a painting almost identical to part of the painting posted by Justin.


https://www.bing.com/images/search?view ... ist=0&vt=0

[JustinHorton]

Blimey, yes! What a spot! Is there any way to locate the title of the one to which you link?

[Wadih Khoury]

https://www.printsandfineart.co.uk/prod ... iniscences

Frank Moss Bennett was a British painter of portraits, historical scenes and architecture. He was known for his posthumous portraits, particularly of soldiers killed during the First World War, which were commissioned by grieving relatives as a remembrance of their sons and husbands

More info here:
http://www.freemanart.ca/moss-bennett.htm

Looking at his paintings, there are quite a few with a chess game ongoing. I think I even spotted one called mate in two.

[Adam Raoof]

Looks like FM Bennett, or someone reproducing his artwork or style. The link below is a painting almost identical to part of the painting posted by Justin.


https://www.bing.com/images/search?view ... ist=0&vt=0

FM? Another chess connection! Chess seems to have featured in a LOT of his paintings.

[Mick Norris]

Blimey, yes! What a spot! Is there any way to locate the title of the one to which you link?

You might well like this one Justin Cat

[JustinHorton]

Heh, yes indeed.

I notice that Harry's image isn't quite identical to the part of our painting it resembles, which is more intriguing still.

[Christopher Kreuzer]

Wow, that is a great find by Harry Duff. Was that from previous knowledge of his style, or using something like the "find similar images" function in Google Images search (or something like that)?

I don't want to get anyone (or Justin) too excited, but some of Bennett's works have been auctioned for tens of thousands of pounds. See the Wikipedia article on him which has links to auctions at Christie's and Bonhams.

Obviously it has to be a genuine original with suitable provenance, and this might only be an imitation or copy and the absence of a signature or any provenance (yet) is a problem. But definitely worth looking into further.

Can you tell whether it is oil on canvas, or if it is a print on paper? Is it behind glass as well as mounted in a frame?

[Christopher Kreuzer]

Heh, yes indeed.

I notice that Harry's image isn't quite identical to the part of our painting it resembles, which is more intriguing still.

There is no dog. I wonder which one came first? The clothing colours are different. Sadly, the painting Justin has seems to be inferior to the Bennett one on "prints and fine arts.com". It might be an imitation. It might be a print.

Hopefully Justin can get in contact with an expert to find out.

Bennett did churn out lots of paintings, so you probably will need an expert to pin down details here.

I'm wondering if someone copied *two* Bennett paintings and combined them into one?

[Christopher Kreuzer]

Final post on this for now.

This is worth a read:

http://www.freemanart.ca/moss-bennett.htm

It goes into issues of imitations and authenticity and forgeries (and innocent copies as well).

[Harry Duff]

I found it via google images, searching on something like 'hunting men fireside paintings' then 'Bennetts paintings' after spotting that some of his paintings looked vaguely like Justins (red coats, stately lounge etc). I also tried searching on chess as Bennett seems to have done quite a few paintings with people playing chess but I couldn't find anything that fitted the painting. But I did stumble across the other part of the painting in another search which I posted in the link.

So what's the story? Is it (Justins?) by Bennett? One of the sites warns that there's a lot of copies of his paintings out there. And why would he do the bigger one and then another painting virtually the same as part of it? Maybe the one I posted is his first attempt and he added the dog and the chess players in Justins version later?

All of this leaves me with nothing but admiration for the experts on Antiques Roadshow!

And sorry Justin, no name yet for the painting at the link.

[JustinHorton]

I'm wondering if someone copied *two* Bennett paintings and combined them into one?

Not that I know anything, but it has that kind of aspect to it, the two parts don't seem entirely to work together, do they?

[Adam Raoof]

I like it. I think it is a print, though this is easy for Justin to check especially when you look at the edges of the canvas (assuming it is on canvas). Is it attached on the back with staples?

I also think it is an amalgamation of two separate paintings, mainly because of the composition but also because of the unusual width.

[JustinHorton]

Is it attached on the back with staples?

[Kevin Thurlow]

Someone who knows a lot more about art than me has wandered in. They pointed out that Frank Moss Bennett (1874-1953) went to the Slade and Royal Academy (both top art schools) and yet painted in a very old-fashioned way, bearing in mind that Kandinsky, Picasso, Edward Hopper etc were around at the same time. The painting doesn't look like end of 19th Century style. This seemed a bit odd. But maybe he decided to be traditional. The Post-Impressionists had already made their mark. He did loads of chess paintings.

As for the two images, maybe he decided to do more than one painting of essentially the same scene, (Munch did various versions of "The Scream") or somebody liked the original and did a copy (which you are allowed to do as long as you don't sign it), and then expanded on it.

It is slightly difficult to tell, but is the guy on the left also the one playing chess on the right (having changed his boots)?

Anyway, it is a nice picture!

[JustinHorton]

They pointed out that Frank Moss Bennett (1874-1953) went to the Slade and Royal Academy (both top art schools) and yet painted in a very old-fashioned way, bearing in mind that Kandinsky, Picasso, Edward Hopper etc were around at the same time.

Though not really quite the same time, no?