A poignant and powerful art exhibit, “Highwire Act: Insights Into Substance Abuse” will be on display as part of the City of Santa Clarita’s Heroin Kills initiative.

Highwire Act features the works of artists Christine McKee, Claire Putney, Barbara Reid and Chris Likins and was created as part of the Arts Council of Kern County’s Creating Community Program. It is visiting Santa Clarita through the month of December and will close Jan. 7, 2012.

The exhibit, originally sponsored by Kaiser Permanente, explores the impacts of substance abuse through various visual art forms, including photography, painting and mixed media.

Entrance to the Highwire Act exhibit and events are free and open to the public.

Heroin Kills.org was created to educate residents about the presence and dangers of heroin in Santa Clarita. The site contains links to recovery and counseling organizations and facts Santa Clarita residents should know.

The exhibit will open with an artist reception at 6 p.m. Friday, in Space 135 on Town Center Drive in the Westfield Valencia Town Center. The space – between Pottery Barn and Abercrombie – is a temporary gallery being donated by Westfield.

Refreshments will be served and no reservation is required to join the artists for this special evening. There will also be an artists’ lecture at 1 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 7, 2012.

Learn more about Common Spaces art at santa-clarita.com; for information on substance abuse, visit heroinkills.org.