Romare Bearden returns from Army, develops figurative painting style

Romare Bearden returned from Army service in 1945-1946 and developed his figurative oil painting style drawing on Cubist influences, exhibiting at the Samuel Kootz Gallery and other New York venues. His 1940s work laid the essential groundwork for the landmark collage practice he would develop in the 1960s, making him one of the defining American artists of the twentieth century.