Gabrielle Smarr is hoping her exhibit at the Tamaqua Arts Center sheds light on mental health and the journey to wellness.

“I’m a big proponent of mental health awareness,” said Smarr, of Tamaqua, who’ll display her photographs and multimedia pieces.

A meet and greet with Smarr will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday at the 125 Pine St. arts venue. The event is free and light refreshments will be served.

Attendees who visit the gallery through Sept. 27 will see Smarr’s work, photos of light and landscapes that she’s taken while traveling the country and abroad.

“The show is kind of about the healing journey of people and mental health,” Smarr said. “It’s so stigmatized. Everybody suffers it, everybody deals with it, however, we’re brought up to just suck it up.”

What helped Smarr was travel. It started with a group of friends.

“Then I decided to do it solo,” she said.

Smarr piled essentials into her tiny Volkswagen Rabbit for her first of many cross-country trips. She’d hike and explore during the days, and huddle into the back seat of the car to sleep the nights away.

“In traveling alone, I’ve met people and made friends who have shared experiences that are so connecting and human,” Smarr said. “They’re going through (issues) too. They might be trying to gain their independence and footing.”

She’d eventually trade in the Volkswagen for a converted van.

But despite the change of travel modes, she always packed a camera and clicked away as she crisscrossed the nation. More recent trips took her to Australia and across Europe.

“So basically what I want to do is go back through my whole growth process and mental health journey,” she said of the exhibit. “In my mind, I call it ‘the process.’”

She likened it to an Eras tour — musician Taylor Swift’s concert tour that celebrates her career and life through music.

“It will be like, this happened and this was my response to it,” Smarr said. “This desperate idea of trying to cope with things and understand trauma and become a stronger person. Travel was the first thing that broke me out into that and brought me into this idea of finding self.”

Attendees will see photos of the West Coast, Pacific Northwest, South West — and Joshua Tree National Park. Look for photos of The Land Down Under, along with shots of Europe.

“I visited a lot of really special places and that’s what I really want to focus on,” she said.

Smarr will also include print making, writing and other pieces of her art — all things that helped her heal.

The exhibit will be on display through Sept. 27.