Tale Me About It, 1984, original 48"x 48" oil on canvas.
This painting owes a heavy debt to two Picasso paintings: Woman in Spanish Costume, which Picasso painted in 1917, and by Picasso’s later The Peasants’ Repast, After LeNain. Stettner fell in love with these two paintings when he personally viewed them at the May 22 through September 16, 1980 Picasso exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum Of Art in New York City. This 1980 exhibit was one of only three major Picasso exhibitions in New York to date. Similar to a Picasso painting, Stettner’s "Tale Me About It" gives a feeling of repose and is a further example of his master of tonal nuance and shape. Jim Stettner became a master of tonal nuance and shape while developing his “pixilated” oil painting technique. He is well known for his use of his painterly, but precise, bold strokes and constant use of bright, rich, vibrant colors. In this painting Stettner has avoided contrast in favor of a sense of harmony and tranquility.
