When I began working with glass in 1982, I had no idea that I'd be so connected to the material in the way that I am. It was only when I began to experiment with using designs from my Tlingit cultural heritage that my work began to take on a new purpose and direction.

Over time, my skill with the material of glass and traditional form line design has strengthened and evolved, allowing me to explore more fully my own relationship to both my culture and chosen medium. This evolution, and subsequent commercial success, has positioned me as an influence on contemporary indigenous art.

Through teaching and collaborating in glass with other Native American, Maori, Hawaiian, and Australian Aboriginal artists, I've come to see that glass brings another dimension to indigenous art. The artistic perspective of indigenous people reflects a unique and vital visual language which has connections to the ancient codes and symbols of the land, and this interaction has informed and inspired my own work.

My work with glass transforms the notion that Native artists are only best when traditional materials are used. It has helped advocate on the behalf of all indigenous people -- affirming that we are still here -- that that we are declaring who we are through our art in connection to our culture.

My work continues to evolve and connect my personal cultural perspective to current modern art movements, and I have received much attention for striving to keep the work fresh and relevant. I have been honored that my success has inspired other artists from underrepresented indigenous cultures to use glass and other non-traditional materials in their work, and hope that I can continue to encourage more innovation in this area as my career progresses.
Additionally, the basis of my work is the relationship between European glass blowing traditions and Northwest Native art. Themes of transformation, animal spirits and shamanism are revealed through blown glass forms and mystical sand carved Tlingit designs. 
I learned the art of glass blowing by working with artists in the Seattle area including Benjamin Moore, Dante Marioni, and Dale Chihuly. As a student and assistant, my focus was on mastering the techniques of the European tradition, which had taken hold in Seattle. This led to working at Kosta Boda (Sweden) where I studied Scandinavian design and met my future wife. Throughout these thirty-plus years of glass blowing I have also had opportunities to learn the secrets of the Venetian glass masters by working with Italian legends Lino Tagliapietra, Cecco Ongaro, and Pino Signoretto. Over the years, I have been very involved with the Pilchuck Glass School as a student and consequently as an instructor and Trustee of the Board of Directors. In 2010, I was awarded an honorary Doctor of Arts degree from the University of Puget Sound. 
My work has been shown internationally and is included in museum collections such as The British Museum (London, UK), The Museum of Fine Arts (Boston, MA), The Seattle Art Museum (Seattle WA), the Corning Museum of Glass (Corning, NY), the Mint Museum of Art and Design (Charlotte, NC), the Heard Museum (Phoenix,  AZ), and the Smithsonian Institution (Washington, DC). In 2003 my work was shown in a solo exhibition at the Seattle Art Museum and was also presented with the Corning Museum of Glass' Rakow Commission. In 2009 the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, WA, launched a major mid-career survey entitled Preston Singletary: Echoes, Fire, and Shadows. This exhibition toured nationally, including the National Museum of the American Indian (New York), The Heard Museum (Phoenix, AZ), and the Anchorage Museum at the Rasmeussen Center (Anchorage, AK). This show featured Clan House, my largest commission to date. Currently I have just completed the first of a series of three monumental cast glass totem poles, cast in the Czech Republic.