Tlingit Basket

Artist Preston Singletary Tlingit, born 1963

Date2012

MediumBlown and sand-carved glass

Dimensionsheight, width, and depth: 18 × 18 1/2 × 18 1/2 in. (45.7 × 47 × 47 cm)

ClassificationsGlass

Credit LineGift of Mr. and Mrs. G. Wallace Newton

Object number2023.5.1

On View

On view

Label TextSingletary has carved out a distinct path in both American studio glass and contemporary Indigenous art with his profound representations and reclamations of Tlingit culture. He skillfully marshals the material properties of glass to creatively communicate the cultural knowledge of Tlingit peoples, including stories, mythologies, symbols, and memories passed down to him from his Tlingit great-grandmother.

Singletary’s glass baskets take their inspiration from traditional Tlingit spruce root baskets and their bold geometric designs. Patterns are often inspired by natural forms like butterfly wings, whale’s teeth, and flying geese. He incorporates these motifs, as can be seen in the yellow basket: the middle band is a butterfly design, the top and bottom bands represent waves, and the triangles represent mountains.
[L. Applebaum, "The People's Collection, Reimagined," 2024]
Note: This work was shown in a group of three glass baskets by Singletary [2023.5.1, 2023.5.2, and 2023.5.3].Published ReferencesNancy Strickland Fields, Rose Simpson and Stephen Fadden, To Take Shape and Meaning: Form and Design in Contemporary American Indian Art (exhibition catalogue) (Raleigh, NC: North Carolina Museum of Art, 2024), illus. (color) 160, cited 176.Exhibition HistoryRaleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, "To Take Shape and Meaning: Form and Design in Contemporary American Indian Art." March 2-July 28, 2024.

Raleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, "The People's Collection Reimagined," November 18, 2024-present. Object Rights Statement

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