Dan Friday Glass

Dan Friday is a Native artist and member of the Lummi Nation. Based in Seattle, Friday has spent the last 20 years honing his skills as a sculptor. Friday’s themes and imagery are drawn from his Coast Salish heritage.

Often using deceptively simple silhouettes, Friday makes blown and sculpted glass works of totems with owls, ravens, or other birds, as well as bears, which honor his family history. Creativity was fostered in his family from an early age. Living with no television and knowing his rich cultural heritage of the Lummi Nation meant making things with his hands was a regular activity. In the artist’s words:

“My family are the ‘Children of the Setting Sun.’ We are the descendents of Xa-Tel-Ek (pronounced Haytelock), also known as Frank Hillaire. Hillaire signed the Treaty of Point Elliott of 1855, effectively removing our people from the San Juan Island chain in Washington State and establishing the Lummi Nation Reservation near Bellingham, Washington. Xa-Tel-Ek was known as ‘The Bear’ and the bear has been an important spirit to my family; from my great-grandfather’s totems to his father’s drum. Through works like this, I embrace the large color palette glass has to offer, and a longstanding family identity.”

Friday has worked for Dale Chihuly and has demonstrated and had exhibitions at the Corning Museum of Glass in New York, the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, Washington, and the Burke Museum in Seattle, among other noteworthy institutions.

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(Biography provided by Chesterfield Gallery)

The history of sculpture as we know it is believed to have origins in Ancient Greece, while small sculptural carvings are among the most common examples of prehistoric art. In short, sculpture as a fine art has been with us forever. A powerful three-dimensional means of creative expression, sculpture has long been most frequently associated with religion — consider the limestone Great Sphinx in Giza, Egypt — while the tradition of collecting sculpture, which has also been traced back to Greece as well as to China, far precedes the emergence of museums.

Technique and materials in sculpture have changed over time. Stone sculpture, which essentially began as images carved into cave walls, is as old as human civilization itself. The majority of surviving sculpted works from ancient cultures are stone. Traditionally, this material and pottery as well as metal — bronze in particular — were among the most common materials associated with this field of visual art. Artists have long sought new ways and materials in order to make sculptures and express their ideas. Material, after all, is the vehicle through which artists express themselves, or at least work out the problems knocking around in their heads. It also allows them to push the boundaries of form, subverting our expectations and upending convention. As an influential sculptor as much as he was a revolutionary painter and printmaker, Pablo Picasso worked with everything from wire to wood to bicycle seats.

If you are a lover of art and antiques or are thinking of bringing a work of sculpture into your home for the first time, there are several details to keep in mind. As with all other works of art, think about what you like. What speaks to you? Visit local galleries and museums. Take in works of public art and art fairs when you can and find out what kind of sculpture you like. When you’ve come to a decision about a specific work, try to find out all you can about the piece, and if you’re not buying from a sculptor directly, work with an art expert to confirm the work’s authenticity.

And when you bring your sculpture home, remember: No matter how big or small your new addition is, it will make a statement in your space. Large- and even medium-sized sculptures can be heavy, so hire some professional art handlers as necessary and find a good place in your home for your piece. Whether you’re installing a towering new figurative sculpture — a colorful character by KAWS or hyperreal work by Carole A. Feuerman, perhaps — or an abstract work by Won Lee, you’ll want the sculpture to be safe from being knocked over. (You’ll find that most sculptures should be displayed at eye level, while some large busts look best from below.)

On 1stDibs, find a broad range of exceptional sculptures for sale. Browse works by your favorite creator, style, period or other attribute.