Bright, outgoing, athletic, generous, fearless, caring, sensitive, happy. Thatâs how those who knew them describe them. They are smiling. Their eyes seem almost alive with intelligence and hope. But all of the subjects of Theresa Clowerâs 160 graphite portraits are dead from substance abuse disorder.
Clower, a North Carolina-based artist, founded the Into Light, a national nonprofit dedicated to erasing the stigma of substance abuse disorder, after she lost her son Devin Bearden in 2018. The project pairs portraits and narratives of people that have lost their lives to substance abuse disorder.
Into Light runs at The Ware Center in Lancaster from March 5-26. The building itself is closed to the public, but the portraits will be available to see from the street. Visitors can scan a QR code that will take them to YouTube videos of a student actor reading from the narratives that go with the portraits. Lancasterâs show will be the fourth Into Light exhibit; Clower has a