About Dale Talley

I started making furniture in 1998. I really admire the craftsman era of architecture and furniture making, so I used it as inspiration and decided to make my own, twisted version of it. I also really enjoyed taking things that others threw away and repurposing them into something beautiful that could display in a home.

I didn’t start making artwork until I turned 35. I just remember having an epiphany in my garage and felt like I was made to do this. The very next day I was filled with drive and a passion to pursue a career as an artist. I got into a gallery in Sherman Oaks, California and started selling. A small following emerged, so I started hunting for galleries. I would literally get in my car with one of my cabinets and start driving around Malibu, Santa Monica, just all the high-end areas. I had no fear back then, I didn’t care what anybody thought, I just went for it (laughs).

Well, at the very beginning, inspiration came from a need for money. I had a full-time job, but did remodels on the side. I was finishing a bathroom remodel and the client had hung a little cabinet right above the toilet. I looked at the cabinet and thought, “I could do that.” The next day on the way home from work, I stopped by the lumber yard, grabbed a pallet, went home, and built my first cabinet.

There’s a starting point, but it never really comes out the way I see it at the very beginning. Usually a single piece of material is what starts the whole piece. I like the impulsiveness of my work. Sometimes working on one piece is what leads to the next one. The thing I love about my work is that it’s literally impossible to duplicate — the materials that construct each piece are completely different, one-of-a-kind finds. I can’t stand to do the same thing. I have to do something different every time even if it’s just a little bit different.

I am in constant search for materials at all times, everywhere I go. I find materials on the street, in alleys, on construction job sites, vintage markets, old-school swap meets, thrift stores, vintage lumber yards, and garage sales.

I was born and raised in Southern California. We moved around a lot due to my dad‘s work, but we always ended up back there. It's where I met my wife and where my boys were raised. I’ve lived in Arizona for the last 10 years.

I started doing construction with my father before high school. After I got married, I went to work for a big framing contractor and was in the carpenters union. The majority of my education was at work, learning things the hard way.

Women make up the majority, probably 60%. Sometimes clients purchase multiple pieces as a collection. But when I sit at a show and try to figure out who’s going to like my work or not, it’s hard to do. Sometimes the people who I think would like my work don’t care for it at all, and the ones I’d least expect to like it absolutely love it. 

Since living in the Phoenix area, I’ve only displayed work in one gallery — Practical Art. Back in California, I was in five galleries: Handmade Galleries (Sherman Oaks), Tops Gallery (Malibu), Raw Style Gallery (Santa Monica), The Folk Art Gallery (Pasadena), and another gallery in Ojai, but I cannot remember the name. When it comes to shows, there’s been too many to count! I’ve done shows all over California, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Texas, Alabama. At least 25 total.