From the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s, Stella created a large body of work that responded in a general way to Herman Melville’s "Moby-Dick." During this time, the increasingly deep relief of Stella's paintings gave way to full three-dimensionality, with sculptural forms derived from cones, pillars, French curves, waves, and decorative architectural elements. To create these works, the artist used collages or maquettes that were then enlarged and re-created with the aids of assistants, industrial metal cutters, and digital technologies. "La scienza della pigrizia" ("The Science of Laziness"), from 1984, is an example of Stella's transition from two-dimensionality to three-dimensionality. It is fabricated from oil paint, enamel paint, and alkyd paint on canvas, etched magnesium, aluminum and fiberglass.