Leslie Barlow: Loving

Join us to celebrate the opening of the first exhibition of PF5 (PF’s fifth exhibit season).

Leslie Barlow’s exciting new body of work features 10 large-scale paintings that make visible a community that represents the changing dynamics of Minnesota.

Study of the Loving v. Virginia Supreme Court Case has been an important part of Barlow’s understanding the culture of discrimination surrounding interracial relationships and mixed race people. Anti-miscegenation laws were a part of the US since before the nation was established, and remained so until ruled unconstitutional fifty years ago, in the 1967 court case. The case was brought by Mildred and Richard Loving, a black woman and white man, who had been sentenced to a year in prison in Virginia for marrying each other. The strong link between fear and discrimination binds together the Loving era to the present-day. As the outcome of the presidential election weighs heavily and reinforces the persistence of racial and social divides in our country, on this 50th anniversary of the Loving case we are reminded that, while some progress has been made, we have so much further to go.

The works in this exhibit are moments of the everyday: some intimate, some reminiscent of traditional family portraits, some fleeting and barely captured. Agency over the representation of the narratives in these works allows space for questions and conversation about race, race relations, identity, and family. Ultimately, the works come together to communicate a new story, a story that challenges superficially-simple narratives, celebrates that which makes us unique, and underscores that love knows no barriers.

Opening Reception:
Saturday, February 25, 2017. 7:00pm–12:00am.

Exhibit Run:
February 25, 2017 – March 25, 2017

Gallery Hours:
Tuesdays, Wednesday, Friday: 12:00pm-7:00pm / Saturdays 12:00pm-5:00pm

Leslie Barlow is a fiscal year 2016 recipient of an Artist initiative grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board. 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 culture heritage fund.