Held's painting Seventh Step II is an example of his later work reflecting his statement: "I want to give abstract expressionism structure." Characterized by the intellectual rigor with which he approached his work, Held was ultimately a painter of ideas: "I just don't want to express myself, I want to say something." The work's monumentalism invades one's sense of "real" space, engulfing the viewer and affecting the perception of his surroundings. The painting has an almost sculptural presence.