Children's Fear of Idols II dates from the period when Matta employed a working method known as "psychic automatism". According to this practise the physical process of painting was directed by the subconcious. This painting is a spectacular representation of how Matta's subconcious perceives the Cosmos as being in a permanent state of flux - as truly a universe of contradictions. Viewing the picture, one's eyes dart from object to pattern, from light to dark, finding no rest. Different forms float and collide, while swirling circular lines conjure up whirl pools. There is no visual focus, no end or beginning, just a terrifying infinity and a sensation of desperate insecurity, as if one is being whirled through space, avoiding commets, black holes, invisible plates of glass, like some kind of galactic nightmare. Conflict and unease are the overwhelming impressions one obtains from the picture. The psychological struggle depicted between the subconcious and the unconcious, the rational and the irrational must be resolved before we can achieve a new world view.

Painted towards the end of World War II, Children's Fear of Idols II echoes man's view of a physical world undergoing horrific contention. Although living in New York, Matta was strongly affected by the war raging in Europe. "The war was a ferocious thing, I couldn't ignore it anymore. I began to feel Society in a new way for the first time". Could the "children" in the title refer to man dominated by the fear of the imminent threat of Nazi rule, and the "idols" the uncontrollable and ravaging ideologies that were threatening to change forever the established order?