Leslie Barlow Helps Bring ConFluence Back for a Second Year | Minneapolis College of Art and Design

Leslie Barlow Helps Bring ConFluence Back for a Second Year

September 28, 2025
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Leslie Barlow, "Confluence"

Minneapolis-based artist Leslie Barlow ’16, MFA, is once again helping bring a bold, community-centered vision to life with the return of ConFluence: Futures in Color, a two-day comic-con-style event celebrating BIPOC voices in sci-fi, fantasy, and art.

Barlow, a nationally recognized artist and a driving force behind this artist-led convention, is one of the producers helping shape ConFluence into a joyful, radically inclusive space for creativity and connection.

“It’s really exciting to be able to collaborate with so many incredible people to create ConFluence again this year,” said Barlow. “Events like this, for communities to connect across our diversity, gather in joy, and celebrate our representation, are more critical than ever.”

ConFluence first launched in 2023 and drew nearly 550 attendees. This year’s expanded programming includes workshops, panels, cosplay, gaming, an art marketplace, and a curated visual arts exhibition.

ConFluence: Futures in Color
October 18–October 19, 2025
Northrup King Building (Minneapolis, MN)

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The Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD) acknowledges it is located on traditional, ancestral, and contemporary lands of Indigenous people. This is the ancestral homeland of the Dakota and Ojibwe people, who were forcibly exiled from the land because of aggressive and persistent settler colonialism. We recognize that this place has a complex and layered history. As a community dedicated to creativity, MCAD is committed to ongoing efforts to support and advocate for American Indian Nations and peoples.


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