A new art exhibit featuring local artists’ work and performances is designed to bring attention to the community’s mental health resources.

The Healing Thru Art exhibit will open at Leeds Center for the Arts May 17, Clark County Mental Health Task Force chair Patricia Hopkins said.

“It’s been designed to promote awareness of mental health in the community,” Hopkins said. “The exhibit is open to all forms of art, from painting to music and photography, she said, provided it shows what hope and healing means to the artist.

There will also be an opportunity for the artists to perform, she said.

“We’re excited to include local artists and share their vision of what healing looks like,” she said.

The cover for the group’s resource guide may be chosen from the submitted art work as well, she said.

The overall goal, she said, is removing the stigma of mental health and making it more relatable to the community.

“That’s part of our strategic plan to encourage residents to seek help and reduce the stigma,” Hopkins said. “When we present that to the community, it’s a way of normalizing mental illness. We really want to make it comfortable and accessible.”

The exhibit, a first for the group, will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, May 17. The application and permission form deadline is May 13.

The exhibit will be open to everyone. Hopkins said submitted art must not include nudity or images of drugs, drug use or drug paraphernalia.

Registration forms and permission slips are available at the Clark County Public Library, community mental health agencies and in the public schools. Completed forms and art can be submitted at 114 S. Maple St.