The interesting combination of stylized symbolic imagery, anonymous figures, and black and white tones within Awaiting His Return represents an important shift in White's work. During the late 1930s and early 1940s White was primarily considered a historical painter who specialized in murals. However, in 1942, upon the advice of leading Art Student League instructor Harry Sternberg, White began to shift his style from monumental historical themes strongly influenced by the Mexican muralist movement to more individualized and humanistic portraits of everyday people in contemporary situations. Sternberg not only influenced White to pay more attention to the human figure but also stimulated his interest in the art of precision draftsmanship. White believed that his shift from painting to drawing evolved naturally in his career. He attributed his love of black and white to his interest in the work of German artist Käthe Kollwitz, the relative ease of lithographic reproduction, and the fact that he loved to draw.   T. F.