Twenty-two heroic vessels, some on integrated pedestals and others alone, will come directly from the artist's studio. Werner is inspired by the simple and elegant forms found in Japanese architecture, the primitive works of Oceania and Africa, and by the history of furniture making. Werner's compositions preserve the natural form of the tree by leaving it solid with the exterior relatively untouched. He works in a subtractive process of cutting away with a chain saw to reveal the solid form within the log. At the same time he works to create the greatest amount of interest with the simplest of forms and with the greatest economy of means.
Some areas are highly polished and smooth while other areas are roughly marked with the chain saw.
He has also been in the museum's National Object Invitational exhibition. His work is represented in The Arkansas Arts Center Foundation Collection, the American Craft Museum in New York and in many private collections. Organized by the Decorative Arts Museum. His greatest inspiration, however, came from the world of sculpture via the artists Brancusi and Noguchi. Howard has been carving vessels from large tree sections since the early 1970's.