Barlow’s portraits address the complexities of family and community racial identity. Her lush paintings, with the use of vibrant color and rich brushstrokes, and often blurred lines which suggest uncertain boundaries, challenge the viewer. Through Barlow’s eyes, we see portraiture in a revised light and question our expectations for the genre.
Leslie Barlow graduated in May with a Master of Fine Arts from MCAD. She was recently featured on MN Original, and is June’s featured artist in Minnesota Women’s Press. Links to those features appear below. She is also a recent recipient of the Minnesota State Arts Board Artist Initiative Grant. Barlow has shown her work in numerous venues around the Twin Cities, including two previous group exhibitions at Flow Art Space.