Lush Caribbean landscapes, often peopled with bathers, played a significant role in Bearden's art after 1973 when he and his wife Nanette built a home on the Caribbean island of St. Martin. Living amidst the tropical foliage, away from the city, also encouraged Bearden to reinterpret the Mecklenburg County landscape.

Gouache with ink and graphite on brown paper
Estate of Romare Bearden, courtesy of Romare Bearden Foundation, New York
© Romare Bearden Foundation/Licensed by VAGA, New York, N.Y.

Source: National Gallery of Art, exhibition wall text