Into Light Project will humanize lost loved ones at Oklahoma exhibit

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In 2018, Into Light Project founder Theresa Clower’s worst fear as a mother came true when her son Devin passed away due to an accidental fentanyl overdose.

To cope with her grief, she took the last image of her son taken five hours before his death. Then, she drew a portrait. While it helped her process the pain, she realized she could do more to impact other families going through similar experiences.

“His death really was the inspiration for this project,” Clower told The Black Wall St. Times.

Her son tried to seek help. He “had doors slammed in his face. He was in treatment centers that I would second-guess putting my own dog in. he was made to do forced labor for his care. This is wrong. This is just wrong,” Clower said.

Out of trauma, Clower birthed triumph with the establishment of the Into Light Project. The unique exhibits use art and storytelling to humanize drug addiction. Beginning in Baltimore, Maryland, where her son passed away, her exhibits have spread to 11 states.

Now, the project is accepting applications for 2024 exhibits in Oklahoma, Alabama and Massachusetts. Seeking diversity in gender, ethnicity and age, Clower said the Oklahoma exhibit will accept the first 40 applicants with no cost to the families.

“By humanizing it we want to change the conversation. Drug addiction is not something you hide,” Clower said. “Drug addiction is something you need to have support, medical attention for. When families hide it, the individual with that disease is not getting the help they need.”

Into Light Project: Oklahoma exhibit accepting applications

Accepted applicants who submit an image of their lost loved one will have their image turned into an artistic portrait, along with a narrative featured at the exhibit. In Oklahoma, applications close June 30, 2024.

The exhibit will open October 4, 2024 – December 21, 2024 at the University of Tulsa’s Oklahoma Center for the Humanities, located at 101 E. Archer St. in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The Into Light Project will also gift the portraits of their loved ones to the families on January 11, 2025 during a ceremony. To apply, visit their website.

Situated between the Tulsa Arts District and Historic Greenwood District, Oklahoma Center for the Humanities Director Dr. Sean Latham believes the venue is the ideal location for such an intimate project.

“Oklahoma has been deeply affected by the opioid crisis and, at one point, the deadliest zip code in the entire country was here in Tulsa.  In that sense, we are the epicenter of this national tragedy,” Dr. Latham told The Black Wall St. Times. 

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Beyond the numbers

Between 1991 and 2021, nearly 645,000 Americans have died as a result of an opioid overdose, according to the Centers for Disease Control. The epidemic has touched virtually every corner of the country and communities of all backgrounds.

Thanks to a connection between Jason Rafferty, a TU Arts faculty member, and Theresa Clower, his former student, Into Light Project is gearing up to come to Oklahoma.

“This project is special because it puts a human a face on a crisis so sweeping in scale that it’s easy to get lost in the numbers,” Dr. Latham said. “We aim to do what the arts and humanities do best: look past these statistics to tell the human stories of those who died.  Their stories need to be told and the OCH is grateful that we can help do this essential work here in Oklahoma.”

Ultimately, Theresa Clower hopes humanizing the issue will lead to communities taking a public health approach as opposed to a criminal approach. In recent years, district attorneys have faced criticism for placing criminal charges on friends who witnessed an overdose, which does little to prevent others from coming forward to seek help.

“I hope they realize this is a disease. It belongs on the side of medical attention, not law enforcement,” Clower said.

Applications for Oklahoma remain open until June 30, 2024.