This theme indicates spiritual nourishment: the concentration and consecration of a formless substance within the form of a vessel. The mandala in "The Octave" evokes a point of visual focus and mental concentration which reinforces the original theme. A circle is traditionally a representation of perfection, of an infinite whole. The plant grows out of the circle. Also implied is transformation, i.e. alchemy. The images in some of the paintings of this series--church, arc, mandala--anticipate later works.