Omaha Power Poles | Thomas McLaughlin

Friday, June 5
6:00 to 9:00 PM
6066 Maple Street

Ming Toy Gallery is pleased to host "Omaha Power Poles" by Thomas McLaughlin during the month of June. The opening reception is Friday, June 5, from 6:00 to 9:00pm at 6066 Maple Street (we're right between Au Courant and Legend Comics and Coffee).

McLaughlin's work focuses on the interactions between various materials within sculptural forms. He attended the University of Nebraska at Omaha, majoring in fine art and art history.

This exhibition is the result of a decade long, unsanctioned public art project in which more than 1,000 original artworks were installed on power poles throughout Omaha, NE.

Concentrated in parts of the city where wooden power poles still exist, the works use their function as public message boards and alternative community space.

Once placed, the works were subject to the vagaries of weather, time and would-be collectors, thus creating organic unknowns which became an important component of the project.

Through apprenticeships and residencies, McLaughlin has explored art production in communities around the world. His work has appeared in publications and galleries and is also collected privately.

When he's not creating his own art, McLaughlin is a teacher and mentor working with a number of arts organizations. He is currently the artist-in-residence at UNMC's Munroe-Meyer Institute in the Advocacy and the Arts Program.

"Omaha Power Poles" runs through June 27, 2026. Regular gallery hours are Wednesday and Friday from 1:00 to 6:00pm, Thursday from 3:00 to 8:00pm, Saturday from 10:00am to 1:00pm and by appointment (call or text 402.681.1901)