Work

Door Labyrinth for New Babylon exhibition in Gemeentemuseum, Den Haag in 1974

Interpretative reconstruction of a room in the exhibition New Babylon at Gemeentemuseum in Den Haag in 1974. After this exhibition Constant left the largest part of his New Babylon project at the museum.

The painting is considered an important painting in Constant's oeuvre; it shows his transition from New Babylon to the Late Period. After finishing it, Constant was somewhat shocked by the result: he felt that he had incorporated too much reality into it. Fanny Kelk - art critic and preparing an exhibition and catalogue accompanying the David Roëll Prize for Constant, said she thought the painting was beautiful. This kept Constant from destroying it — he ended up giving the painting to her. Inspired by her words, Constant allowed reality to seep even further into his paintings.