And yet there is another level at which Warner's work is operating, beyond even the development of shape-as-meaning, space and light, or mood and atmosphere. As he has often told me, he perpetually strives to compose the disparate elements within his work into an overall sense of harmony and unity. And like the color reactions in his work, which "release light", the mysterious integration of the disparate shapes in his work "reveals unity", or somehow suggests a greater unity that underlies appearances. This has been an age-old concern of art: the portrayal of a deeper, or even mystical, unity implicit in reality. Sacred art in the West usually portrays anthropomorphic aspects of God; but Warner's art addresses the potential of a greater unity through the composition and the interactions of shape. It is remarkable that with such a high degree of stuctural complexity, Warner is able to create canvases that possess such a balanced and unified impression. Perceiving unity in a piece of art is a very subjective process, but I invite you to consider the compositional unity of such works as "Heaven and Hell" and "Pink Wall".

The absence of human figures in his work, and the predominant use of portrait proportions in his canvases, begin to create the suggestion of a form of alternate portraiture, or iconography, wherein the human iconic portrayal is replaced with the iconic portrayal of landscape and architecture. This can suggest a response to the landscape and architecture as person or personality, not merely as background or panorama. Has there been a greater American landscape painter since Hopper and O'Keeffe?

Altogether, Warner's art must be taken seriously within the entire field of classical and modern art. His work successfully addresses virtually all of the classical concerns of art, while composing elements of shape and light in totally original ways. I believe he has satisfied the requirement of a "great" artist, that he or she have a substantial body of "masterpieces" in his/her oeuvre, works of timeless and undeniable greatness. In addition, Warner's work invokes a sense of space and light, as well as harmony and unity, that point to even the transcendent nature of reality. And the sheer fun, accessibility, and pop pleasure of looking at his work, suggests an artist whose work could and should enjoy limitless appeal.

Theo Cedar Jones  2008