This is a work from Vasarely's period known as Gordes-Crystal which developed as a result of his stay in the Provençal hill town of Gordes (Vaucluse) in the summer of 1948, and which had an important influence on much of his work for the following six or seven years. It is Vasarely's practice to give his abstract paintings names of geographical origin, in this case referring to Nives, a small town in Belgium. This piece is signed and numbered in pencil by the artist.