"Dignified: Individuals with Alzheimer's and Their Caregivers," Photographs by Patterson Lawson

In 2019, Richmond-based photographer Patterson Lawson discovered an interest in documenting individuals and families whose lives were and are affected by Alzheimer’s disease, a progressive disorder that degrades memory and vital brain functions. Lawson found that, unlike other diseases where individuals and family members actively engage the medical community and devote time, energy, and attention to getting well, many assume a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s means the end of a meaningful life. He writes, “These portraits contradict such perceptions. While the losses are real, people with Alzheimer’s are not empty shells... The subjects’ direct gazes reveal their dignity.” Through September 19. The Eleanor D. Wilson Museum is open by  appointment .