Preston Singletary

Preston Singletary (born 1963) is a Native American glass artist.

Biography
Preston Singletary was born in 1963 in San Francisco, California. He grew up in the Seattle-area listening to stories told by his great-grandparents, who were both full Tlingit.

Singletary met Dante Marioni, the son of glass artist Paul Marioni, at the age of 15 in 1979. Shortly after graduating high school, Singletary (who was actively pursuing a career as a musician at the time) was asked by Dante to work as a night watchman at what was then the Glass Eye, a Seattle glass-blowing studio. Singletary quickly moved from being night watchman to working the day shift to eventually joining one of the studio's production teams. In 1984, Singletary took part in a workshop at Pilchuck Glass School for the first time. He has since been involved in Pilchuck as a teacher, student, and more recently as a member of its board of trustees. Singletary has blown glass around the world in countries such as Sweden, Italy, and Finland. In the late 1980s, Singletary began incorporating traditional Tlingit themes into his work and reaching out to other Northwest Coast Native American artists like Joe David, from whom he learned more about Native culture including Northwest Coast formline design.

Work


Early on, Singletary's work drew heavily from European glass artworks, especially those done in the Modernist style. In 1993, Singletary worked as a craftsman in residence at a design school in Scandinavia for six months. While there, his work incorporated elements of the clean, Scandinavian style as well as traditional Tlingit designs, "straddling two different worlds."

Today he is perhaps best known for his use of glass to express and explore traditional Tlingit themes. Many of his works reference clan crests, including the killer whale, which his family claims. Singletary has worked extensively with other native artists creating glass art works such as the Founders Totem Pole (2001) and Devilfish Prow, one of a series created in collaboration with Maori artist Lewis Tamihana Gardiner (2007). Some critics view Singletary's work as not truly Tlingit, because he works in glass rather than more traditional materials, like wood. But Singletary sees himself as "transforming the culture and forging new paths," which he believes should be allowed. "'My work, I feel, has always tried to achieve recognition as something more than “ethnic art.” But at the same time, that’s what gives it its power. It is connected to history, a personal connection through my ethnic background and matrilineal society all the way from my mother to my grandmother and great grandmother. I’m a part of that continuum.'"In 2018 Singletary received the Washington State Governor's Arts and Heritage Award. In 2022 Singletary's work was featured in an exhibition entitled Raven and the Box of Daylight at the National Museum of the American Indian. The same year Singletary became a Fellow of the American Craft Council. Several of his pieces were acquired by the Smithsonian American Art Museum as part of the Renwick Gallery's 50th Anniversary Campaign. In 2024, Singletary and artist David Franklin were selected to create a site-specific sculpture at the Pioneer Square transit stop in Seattle.

Collections

 * Brooklyn Museum of Art, Brooklyn, NY
 * Canadian Museum of History
 * Corning Museum of Glass, Corning, NY (Rakow Commission)
 * Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI
 * Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA
 * National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC
 * Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, WA