About the work
This work was originally part of a larger canvas (approximately 100 x 120 cm), which was exhibited at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam in the same year of its creation. The artist later reworked and reinterpreted the composition by dividing it into three separate parts, which were eventually sold separately. The lower right part, known as 'Komposition', ended up in the Golda & Meyers Marks collection in the United States before being donated to the NSU Art Museum in Fort Lauderdale. The provenance of the upper right part remains unknown to this day. The current canvas, which corresponds to the left side of the original work, is now known by the title 'Nachtvogels'.

Rooskens cut the canvas into pieces, but the reason is unknown. Perhaps he was not satisfied with the composition. No other cut paintings by Rooskens are known. What is certain, however, is that he often made changes to works after they had already been exhibited or reproduced. This often involved minor interventions, such as adding a pair of eyes or a date.