Open Reception October 22, 5-7 pm Please join us on October 22, 2015 from 5-7 pm to “meet the artist” and enjoy light hors d’oeuvres and cash bar. This reception is free and open to the public. Common Thread is a solo exhibition of recent work by artist/educator Laura Youngbird from Breckenridge, Minn. In this exhibition, Youngbird presents two series of portraits featuring friends, family, and important Native artists and scholars such as George Morrison, Gwen Westerman, and Jason Kingbird. She also premieres several new series of prints, featuring descriptive titles such as Loose Ends, Alterations, One Size, and Common Thread, which are united through narratives based on her life and experiences, and the motif of the dress.

Youngbird currently directs the Museum’s Creativity among Native American Artists program, which offers professional development and exhibition and program opportunities to Native artists in the region. An enrolled member of the Minnesota Chippewa, Grand Portage Band, she earned a BFA in painting and drawing, an MA in drawing and printmaking, and a BS in arts education from Minnesota State University Moorhead. Youngbird’s work will be exhibited in the Plains Art Museum’s Xcel Energy Gallery from October 22through February 6, 2016.