Minnesota Handwork
A Celebration of Fiber Art in Minnesota during 2026
In honor of America 250, and as a site for Craft in America’s “Handwork: Celebrating American Craft 2026”, Textile Center presents Minnesota Handwork.
Minnesota Handwork celebrates the state’s proliferate fiber art history, emerging from and honoring tradition, and brimming with innovation. Handwork, as a universal carrier of artistic and cultural practice, connects Minnesotans and our region’s rich history through the common thread of textiles and fiber art. Building, expanding, healing, and bridging community, revering and sharing generational knowledge, acknowledging cultural practice, and celebrating tradition — these are the heart of fiber art practice and this project, connecting us through the handmade.
In celebration of fiber arts as one of the top creative activities in Minnesota, exhibitions throughout 2026 will include curated, juried, and open call opportunities to honor both the traditional and contemporary aspects of fiber and textile arts in Minnesota. These exhibits will feature Minnesota Native artists and practitioners, disability-identity artists, the LGBTQ+ community, and guild and community artists–from emerging to accomplished. A public series of artist discussions will offer insights to the artists and the exhibitions throughout the year.
MINNESOTA HANDWORK | CURRENT + UPCOMING
EXHIBITIONS AND EVENTS
A Common Thread 2026, July 30 – October 10, 2026
The Stashery Craft Club
We are excited to announce The Stashery Craft Club — a new, free, fun, fiber-focused space to make + craft in community! Beginning Friday, September 11, we invite you to join us EVERY Friday from 12 – 2…
Embodied Material, curated by Shug Munic, October 27, 2026 – January 7, 2027 Artist reception Thursday, November 5, 4 – 7 pm
Selections from A Common Thread– traveling exhibit, Lanesboro Arts, Lanesboro, MN, October 24 – December 20, 2026
Holiday Gallery Shop, November 3 – December 24, 2026 Open House reception Thursday, November 5, 4 – 7 pm
Selections from A Common Thread– traveling exhibit, Art of the Lakes, Battle Lake, MN, January 9 – February 20, 2027
EXHIBITIONS + EVENTS ARCHIVE:
2025 McKnight Fiber Artist Fellowship Exhibition, Jan 13 – April 4, 2026
Unbound, Jan 27 – April 11, 2026
Fiber Art for All Open House!
Join us for our yearly winter Fiber Art for All Open House celebrating all things fiber art! Featuring a Makers Market with 25 local artists, hands-on demos with our staff and teaching artists, coffee, music, a scavenger hunt, and…
TWO-SPIRIT STORIES, April 14 – July 11, 2026
Mni Sóta: Traditions & Innovations, April 14 – July 11, 2026
Textile Center Garage Sale: April 30 – May 2, 2027
The Stashery’s First Birthday!
It’s fun to be one! The Stashery is coming up on it’s first birthday, and we want to celebrate with all of you! That’s one year of connecting fiber artists with secondhand supplies, meeting new creative friends, and…
Trunk Show with Walia Hasan
Walia Hasan brings her luminous silk creations to the shop in a special Trunk Show at Textile Center, featuring hand-painted silk bandanas, scarves, headbands, hand painted tops, accessories, and a few experimental fiber pieces of block prints. Blending…
Trunk Show with Social Fabric Research
This week, Social Fabric Research will be in the Textile Center Gallery Shop with local fibers, yarns, and handcrafted everyday items. Their work encourages and embodies sustainable community, soil-to-soil production, consumption, and composting in our local landscape. They…
Artist Reception: TWO-SPIRIT STORIES and Mni Sóta: Traditions & Innovations
Join us for an artist reception at Textile Center on Thursday, June 4, 5:30 – 7 pm (Curator introductions at 6 pm), to celebrate the following exhibitions: Mni Sóta: Traditions & Innovations: Fiber and Material Culture of the…
Trunk Show with Abduljabbar Khatri + Sufiyan Khatri
We’re excited to welcome back Abduljabbar Khatri & Sufiyan Khatri from Bhuj, Gujarat, India! In conjunction with their sold-out workshop, these artisans will be selling beautiful bandhani tie dyes and Ajrakh block printed textiles in a Trunk Show…
Slow Fashion Sale
The Slow Fashion Sale is back for its third year! Are you concerned with the impacts of fast fashion, but finding that ethical alternatives are not always within reach? Shop unique, secondhand garments created and donated by members of our creative…
Artist Reception for A Common Thread: August 6, 5 – 7 pm
A beloved tradition for 25 years, A Common Thread highlights the remarkable creativity of Textile Center’s member artists and the versatility of fiber art. More than 130 works throughout Textile Center’s galleries will showcase techniques including stitching, quilting,…
This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
Keep up with developments on our page on the national HANDWORK website HERE
