Talking it Over, a.k.a.Clinching the Argument

Gustave Baumann

Talking it Over was originally published by the artist in 1910 for his portfolio of twelve color woodcuts, In the Hills o’ Brown. This image is also known with the titles Clinching the Argument and The Argument. Impressions were printed over several years and variations in color occurred over time. Regarding this image, Chamberlain wrote on page 147 of In A Modern Rendering The Color Woodcuts of Gustave Baumann: “At first glance, this image appears to be illustrating a conversation or argument between residents of Nashville in front of the local hardware store, but it fact the argument has an artistic rather than a rural bent. Baumann couldn’t resist inserting himself in the crowd, as he had done earlier in Singverein. He placed himself in profile at the end of the bench, seated next to a young woman who might possibly be his sister Rose. The man in the lone chair bears a striking resemblance to Bill Quick, the carpenter of Nashville, featured in Baumann’s Chips an’ Shavings.”