NEW YORK, NY.- With the Olympics underway, there are always many discussions about what it takes to become a top athlete. That it takes an extensive amount of natural talent, or in this case athletic skill is an indisputable fact. However, an often-overlooked characteristic of these top sporters is the ability to apply the coaching given together with natural talent to produce an outcome. This is a quality that often gets dismissed but is probably one of the most important. Interestingly, for many artists it is the same.

Frank Moss Bennett was born in Liverpool. He came from an ‘artistic family’ because his father was a successful architect. I think we can pause there and note that there may not have been huge amounts of creativity in architecture at the time, but it does show that Frank may have inherited the skill of applied learning. It seems he also inherited a talent as a draftsman and from a young age showed a keen interest in drawing and painting.

Bennett attended Clifton College Bristol, which offered a broad classical education, but no real possibility to study as an artist. He left in 1893 together with his close friend Eddie Wells. They were both then accepted to The Slade School of Fine Art, which at that time, required a portfolio submission but no real artistic training. The Slade offered a rigorous curriculum that emphasized both technical skill and creative expression. Learning from the likes of Henry Tonks, Philip Wilson Steer and John Singer Sargent, it is said that Bennett excelled here.

Bennett then left The Slade and started studying at St John’s Wood School of Art around 1894. At St John’s the training was focused on studying the human form through live models, which was considered essential for developing technical proficiency. The school also placed a strong emphasis on the study of classical art. Most students attended St John's Wood Art School to prepare for the entrance examinations of the Royal Academy Schools, the most prestigious of all the art schools.

Within a few months Bennett was able to join The Royal Academy. He quickly proved himself to be a capable and accomplished artist. More important than his talent, his painting The Greek Runner Ladas Falling Dead as he Goes to Receive his Crown at Olympia showed his skills as a learner. He was able to demonstrate his technical rendering abilities absorbed at The Slade and his proficiency in interpretation of the human figure learned at St John’s Wood, along with his high knowledge of classical art. Taking all his training and placing it together on one canvas was a masterful stoke.

Bennett's painting won him the Gold Medal and launched his career as an artist. He used his prize money to travel and returned to a full slate of commissions, it was so famous. No doubt Bennett had talent, but his true skill was his applied learning. Don’t underestimate the mental abilities of those Olympic Athletes! Think of what amazing, applied learners they are.

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