Whilst John Wells is best known for his abstract paintings and constructions, his reliefs hold a significant place in his body of work. Wells began experimenting with reliefs during the 1940s, driven in part by his friendship and dialogue with Ben Nicholson, and an opportune introduction to Naum Gabo. During one of Wells’ trips to St Ives during WW2, whilst serving as a GP on the Isles of Scilly, Ben Nicholson and Barbara Hepworth made that introduction. The Russian-American sculptor, who shared Wells’ training in medicine and natural sciences, introduced him to the theories and possibilities of Constructivism. Both men, Nicholson and Gabo, encouraged Wells's exploration of geometry and spatial structure and their influence is particularly evident in Wells’s reliefs. 

Wells's reliefs feature clean geometric forms, subtle layering, and careful attention to proportion, reflecting his lifelong interest in mathematics and natural harmony. In Circle and Square Relief, 1966, the inversion of the perfect circle, at once bright, then dark, then greyed out employing Wells's practised technique of scratching back, is a great example of this natural harmony and mathematical refinement. The repeated juxtaposition of circle and square operates not merely as motif, but as an acute exploration of order and balance of forms.

The relief is constructed from wood and board arranged in shallow planes that play with light and shadow. Unlike purely pictorial painting, his reliefs invite the viewer to experience depth and rhythm physically, though on a small, intimate scale. They can be seen as extensions of his abstract drawings, but with an added tactile dimension.

By the mid-60s, when Circle and Square Relief  was conceived, Wells had enjoyed several exhibitions at the auspicious Waddington Gallery (1960, 1962 and 1964) in London building upon his New York solo shows at the Durlacher Gallery ( 1952, 1958 and 1960), and had just acquired a second studio in Newlyn (1965) which he shared for nearly thirty years with the sculptor and his friend, Denis Mitchell.

Wells's reliefs remain quiet, yet highly considered works, echoing his fascination with nature, structure, and order.