"The transition to 'Two Cells with Circulating Conduit' was crucial for me. Psychologically, it was about a sense of movement. Even though it was still confining, it was more optimistic. It also allowed me to represent pictorially the sense of closure and self-referentiality that I was ascribing to late twentieth century culture in general." – Peter Halley

The geometric pattern of "Two Cells With Circulating Conduit" draws parallels with the legendary Hard-edge paintings of Donald Judd, Frank Stella, and Josef Albers. While these works are often characterized as “abstract,” Peter Halley prefers the term “diagrammatic” for his exacting, minimalist compositions. He perceives his lexicon of squares, bars, and rectangles as encoded representations of the ubiquitous presence of geometry in social interactions.

The division of work into two discrete segments evokes an architectural cross-section; the squares symbolise prototypical urban dwellings while the lines indicates the hidden, technological underworld of pipes and cables connecting them. Initiated in 1981, the cell-and-conduit paintings showcase what Halley has described as the “seductive” geometry of 1980s society. The vibrant Day-Glo colors and textured Roll-a-Tex ersatz stucco paint transform these canvases into symbols of a social landscape where artifice replaces empirical experience.