The shape of this large artistic wooden vessel is inspired by Southwestern U.S. Native American pottery and a more modern design of blended checker board and curved elements. The vase is 10" in diameter and 6-3/4" tall. It is comprised of 222 individual pieces of hard maple and purple heart.

This vessel is a complex wood turning made using a method known as "Segmented Woodturning." In this type of wood turning, the basic form to be shaped on a lathe is created by gluing small pieces or segments of wood into multi-sided rings and then stacking and gluing the rings together. The patterns that emerge in the final piece are determined by the sequence of the segments (colors and sizes) in each ring and the sequence and orientation of the rings as they are stacked and glued together.

Artist Lon Baker's work includes traditional bowl and vase shapes and vessels that have a strong Southwestern Native American influence in both shape and the motifs that are used. The rough form of the bowl, vase or vessel made this way is then placed on a lathe and turned or shaped to create the final piece. All of the color in his pieces results from the natural colors of the woods he uses.