Portfolio

The Equivocator

2021 | Mixed Media: Textile, Sculpture | Knotting. Sewing | Rope, Wire, Stocking, Thread, Satin Ribbon, 42 x 60 inches

Collection of Hair and Nails Gallery, Minneapolis, MN

“A belly tied in knots with the red flags that you so delicately placed but insisted did not exist.”
The Equivocator reminds us to pay attention to the knowledge we gain from how we feel in our own bodies. The accusatory “you” in the statement calls out the abuser, and points to a path forward in healing through reasserting and honoring one’s personal integrity.
2021 Created by the artist Maggie Thompson in her studio at the Northrup King Building, Minneapolis, MN
2021 Loaned by the artist to the Rochester Art Center for the group exhibition “The Human Scale”, July 9th - October 24th, Rochester, MN,
2021 Acquired by Hair and Nails Gallery, Minneapolis, MN
2023 Loaned by Hair and Nails Gallery to the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum for the group exhibition “Sharing Honors and Burdens: Renwick Invitational 2023”, May 26th - March 31st, 2024, Washington D.C.
2024 Returned to the collection of Hair and Nails Gallery, Minneapolis, MN
2025 Loaned by Hair and Nails Gallery to the Broodthaers Society of America for the group exhibition, “Text: Textile”, New York, NY
Process Images.

Hospital Gown

2025 | Textile | Beadwork, Sewing | Glass and Plastic Beads, Synthetic Sinew, Nylon Thread | 45 x 73 x 2 inches

The Hospital Gown Project began after Maggie Thompson participated in a supportive intervention with a family member struggling with alcoholism. To process her experiences and honor her relative, she turned to the healing potential of adornment through beading circles—creating shared space and time for beading as a form of cultural transmission and communal joy while holding good intentions for loved ones.
Thompson invited individuals affected by addiction within their families and communities to participate in transforming a ubiquitous blue hospital gown into a fully beaded garment. The artist and her studio team offered brick stitch lessons using a wide range of bead sizes to ensure accessibility across age and skill levels, resulting in unique patches of varying rectilinear shapes.
Coming soon.
Coming soon.

Tug-Of-War (I Am not your white friends)

2025 | Sculpture | Loom Beadwork | Jute, Glass Beads, Ribbon | 2.375 diameter x 168 inches

I Am Not Your White Friend presents a beaded tug-of-war rope, where a red ribbon at the center symbolizes a mixed identity caught between two worlds. The text on the red side references a painful comment made within the Native community—words that, rather than fostering unity, create distance and division. This work reflects on the internal tensions of belonging and the ways harmful language can fracture connection. Through beadwork and symbolism, I explore the complexity of mixed identity and the need for care, accountability, and healing within our own communities.
Coming soon.
Coming soon.

on loving

2023 | Sculpture | Glass Beads, Vinyl, Cotton Fabric, Thread | Beading, Quilting, Sewing, Appliqué | 42 x 90 x 10 inches

TIA Collection, Sante Fe, NM

Quilts are created to recognize transitions in life, with details varying from one tribal community to another. Displaying a Morningstar patterned quilt is a public affirmation of honoring, whether displayed on a wall, on the ground, on a casket, or bestowed as a gift. The conditions of the pandemic, especially early on, interrupted customary funerary practices.

On Loving honors those lost during these difficult years since COVID-19, and honors the grief of the living as well. Beaded by community members from the Twin Cities, the work transforms a painfully anonymous, utilitarian object—the body bag—into a beautiful tribute with a Morningstar pattern.
Coming soon.
Coming soon.

I get mad because i love you

2023 | Textile | Loom Beadwork | Size 11 Delica Beads, Fire Line, Jingles | 48 x 72 x 1 inches

I Get Mad Because I Love You is about navigating psychologically abusive relationships. Loomed with varying shades of clear and white beads the words I Love You stand out most. Even though someone is mistreating you, despite knowing what’s happening, one can get stuck on the words “I Love You” rather than someone's actions resulting in staying in unhealthy relationships.
2023 Created by the artist Maggie Thompson in her studio at the Northrup King Building assisted by Mary Le Garde, Tiger Tuchel, Vanessa Casillas, Sage Phillips, Renee Belanger, Josie Hoffman, Evan Pugh, Tamara Aupaumut, Jennie Kappenman and a few other community members from around the Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN
2023 Loaned by the artist to the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum for the Exhibition “Sharing Honors and Burdens: Renwick Invitational 2023”, May 26th - March 31st, 2024, Washington D.C.
2023 Acquired by the Tia Collection, Santa Fe, NM
2024 Returned to the Tia Collection, Santa Fe, NM
2025 Loaned by the Tia Collection to the Detroit Institute of Art for the exhibition “Anishinaabe Contemporary Art: A Continuation”, September 28th - April 5th, 2026, Detroit, MI
Coming soon.

Quantum Entanglement

2022 | Mixed Media: Textile, Sculpture | Beads, Fabric, Thread, Ink, Batting | Beading, Sewing, Photo Transfer | Approximately 41 x 58.5 x .75 inches

Collection of the Minnesota Museum of American Art, St. Paul, MN

“The wall-based sculpture Quantum Entanglement explores the spiritual physics of heart-soul connections. Two identical heart forms are dressed in raw, tender, fleshy-looking fabric, bordered and bound to one another with beautiful beaded lines – destined conduits.” - Erin Gleeson
2022 Created by the artist Maggie Thompson in her studio at the Northrup King Building, Minneapolis, MN
2022 Loaned by the artist to Bockley Gallery for the solo exhibition “Just Friends”, July 21st - August 27th, Minneapolis, MN
2022 Acquired by the Minnesota Museum of American Art, St. Paul, MN
2024 Exhibited at the Minnesota Museum of American Art for the exhibition “Here, Now”, October 17th - May, 2027, St. Paul, MN
Coming soon.

Breadcrumbing

2022 | Mixed Media: Textile, Sculpture | Bread Crumbs, Vinyl, Metallic Thread, Velcro, Wood | Sewing, Stuffing | 61 x 75 x 2 inches

Borrowing its title from a newish euphemism referring to the act of leading someone on, Breadcrumbing emulates a picket fence in all of its faux. Structurally nonfunctional, its fourteen vinyl panels are a wall bound, gridden abstraction. The sculpture reflects on experiencing the simultaneity of expectations and false promises – how acts of service can lure and conjure attachments, only to be abandoned along with whatever commitment or future they seemed to have signaled.
2022 Created by the artist Maggie Thompson in her studio at the Northrup King Building and assisted by Sage Phillips and Nidaanis Taylor (Studio Intern from the Institute of American Indian Arts), Minneapolis, MN
2022 Loaned by the artist to Bockley Gallery for the solo exhibition “Just Friends”, July 21st - August 27th, Minneapolis, MN
2022 Stored at Bockley Gallery offsite facility, Minneapolis, MN
2023 Loaned by the artist and Bockley Gallery to Franconia Sculpture Park for the solo exhibition “Loves Me, Loves Me Now” January 28th - April 16th, Shafer, MN
2023 Returned to Bockley Gallery offsite storage facility
Coming soon.

Family Portrait

2013 | Textile | Wool, Rayon | Weaving | 3 Panels: 72 x 36 inches each

Collection of the Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis, MN

Family Portrait represents blood quantum, the percentage of Indian blood, of my parents and myself. My Dad is mostly Native American and my Mom is Irish and German. Even though I am mostly "white" I still identify myself as being Native American, but why? In this piece I am exploring and questioning ideas and systems of "authenticity."
Coming soon.
Coming soon.

Intentions

Collection of a Private Collector, Minneapolis, MN

Intentions depicts myself posing behind a vellum curtain, spelling out “MY BODY FEELS LIKE A PLACE YOU ONLY WANTED TO VISIT BUT NEVER CALL HOME.” Using my body as the catalyst between emotion and language I think about how it feels to be in a relationship with someone who never intended on staying or committing fully.
2022 Created by the artist Maggie Thompson in her studio at the Northrup King Building, Minneapolis, MN
2022 Loaned by the artist to Bockley Gallery for the solo exhibition “Just Friends”, July 21st - August 27th, Minneapolis, MN
2023 Acquired by a private collector, Minneapolis, MN
Coming soon.

Swallow

Swallow depicts the interior lining of an esophagus through a series of photo transfers onto sheer fabric. Each square is sewn into a pocket, filled with laser cut modules representing cancer cells. Back lit with LED lights, the piece speaks to the discovery of cancer quietly growing inside the body.
2018 Started by the artist Maggie Thompson during her residency at the Institute of American Indian Arts, Santa Fe, NM
2019 Finished by the artist Maggie Thompson in her studio at the Northrup King Building, Minneapolis, MN
2019 Loaned by the artist to the Waiting Room for the exhibition “How to Become Lost”, February 21st - April 20th, Edina, MN
2019 Returned to the artist and stored in her studio at the Northrup King Building, Minneapolis, MN
Coming soon.