Killer Whale Totem + Hyacinth Medicine Amulet

Preston Singletary

Judge Patricia H. Clark Children and Family Justice Center

Formlines in cast glass depict an orca through Tlingit symbology.

Preston Singletary. Killer Whale Totem, 2015. Lead Crystal. Children and Family Justice Center, Seattle, WA. King County Public Art Collection. Photo: joefreemanjunior.com

"The two figures could be viewed as ancestors, holding a rolled back dorsal fin,” Preston Singletary says of this lead glass killer whale with its head down and its tail at the top. “If you look at the sides you can see the pectoral fin. This happens to be my clan symbol.” Singletary is Tlingit, descended from Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest coast in what today is Alaska, British Columbia, and the Yukon.

Standing over 18 inches tall, Killer Whale Totem was cast in lead crystal in the Czech Republic. The sculpture features a variety of concentric circular shapes and u-forms that are part of the traditional design style known as “formline,” which dates back more than 2,000 years. Formlines change in thickness as they flow around corners, creating harmony in the way they balance opposites—such as positive and negative space, multi-directional and uni-directional shapes, and cultural dualities.

Singletary explores mediums beyond glass too. His cast bronze Hyacinth Medicine Amulet is both a complement to Killer Whale Totem and a tribute to friend and mentor, Hyacinth Joe David. It features a raven head, a land otter with tail extended upwards, and the silhouette of a shaman. The otter, it is said, contributes to a shaman's ability to heal the sick.

Based in Seattle, Singletary makes work that embodies themes of transformation, animal spirits, and shamanism through elegant forms and mystical sand carved designs. His artworks are included in numerous museum collections such as The British Museum in London, The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts, The Seattle Art Museum, the Corning Museum of Glass in New York, and the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.

About the Location

Judge Patricia H. Clark Children and Family Justice Center

4Culture believes in juvenile justice reform that results in zero youth detention. We also believe artists can lead the way in enacting this change, as culture-bearers, storytellers, and community-builders. Every single artist involved with the Clark Children and Family Justice Center (CFJC) project has demonstrated a commitment to uplifting young people. Likewise, all of the…

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