In the early 1990s, painter Kerry James Marshall created a series of paintings depicting black love a subject that, despite being glaringly simple, was largely absent from the annals of art history.

In one 1992 painting, Slow Dance, a black couple slow dances together in their living room as music notes swirl around them. Marshall immortalizes this romantic moment, exceptional in its ordinariness, magical because its mundane. With his paintbrush, Marshall sought to normalize the banal elements of black life that are nearly always overlooked by art, film, and cultural representation. The basic gesture of depicting black couples hanging out was something revolutionary.

Artist Leslie Barlow had Marshall on the mind when she embarked on her most recent series Loving in 2015. The mixed media paintings depict interracial couples based around the Minnesota area, where Barlow lives and works. The series takes its name from the landmark Supreme Court case Loving v. Virginia, which celebrated its 50th anniversary this year.

Fifty years feels wildly short when considering this is how long interracial marriage has been legal in the United States. And still, prejudice regarding interracial couples endured long past the Loving ruling. I think a lot of people forget that there is this history of discrimination, and it didnt just disappear when the Supreme Court banned anti-discrimination laws, Barlow told The Huffington Post. I wish that was the case, but racism is totally alive and well in this country.