The interplay of cultural, political, spiritual and artistic concerns in Hotere's body of work meant that at any given time in his career whilst certain ideas were coming to maturation, others were nascent. Eclipse II is one such example of this: as the artist was completing his acclaimed Sangro series, he was also seeking to evolve formalist concerns through works such as this. The painting comprises a closely-rendered interplay between light, dark, form and line: elements which collaboratively evoke the work's title. Contained within a painted wooden surround, the materials for this work are thought to have possibly been acquired by Hotere after having been discarded from a London television factory.