This study sought to investigate the use of art therapy to assist a young person with mental illness making a transition from long-term inpatient care to a psychosocial residential rehabilitation setting. An art-based phenomenological case study method was used to investigate a lived experience of this transition. The participant attended 11 art therapy sessions and used a visual journal daily over a six-week period shortly after the move to the new setting. Data analysis identified themes and visual features that appeared repeatedly in the images and enhanced the description of the participant's experience. Results showed that the transitional process of moving into a community setting involved a journey of learning, self-development and maturation. Art therapy helped the process of life style transition, especially through the use of a visual journal that functioned as a continuous outlet for guiding self expression and self-identity. (Contains 1 table and 3 figures.)