In his Beatitudes series, Spencer brings together countless aspects of life, including love, sexuality, religion, reality, and fantasy. Of these paintings, Spencer wrote, "I love them from within outwards and whatever that outward appearance may be it is an exquisite reminder of what is loved within, no matter what that exterior appearance may be." Spencer explained in the 1930s, "There are two joys, the joys of innocence and religiousness and the joys of change and sexual experience and while these two selves seem unrelated and irreconcilable, still I am convinced of their ultimate union."
