If you find yourself wandering through the Lake Chapala Society (LCS) on a Wednesday between 11 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., you may feel inspired to join a group of adults seated around a patio table, chatting, sipping coffee – and coloring.
No longer just for young people, coloring has been gaining popularity with the older crowd, especially with the surge of adult-style coloring books hitting the marketplace.
For the last four years, Diane Pearl has been riding this wave of popularity. Best known for her Ajijic art gallery, Diane Pearl Colecciones, she created her Creatively Mindful coloring books and workshops as a psychological and health outlet and as a means of promoting Ajijic as an artist community.
Atop the patio table where Pearl and others are seated are strewn an assortment of colored pens and pencils, along with pages of black and white drawings – all Pearl’s creations. These free, weekly coloring workshops average nine to 12 participants during the high season and are geared toward every level of artist and non-artist, expats and Mexicans alike.
Says Pearl: “The act of coloring is akin to meditating, with the same amazing health benefits, such as lowered blood pressure and stress levels. With all of the sound bytes that bombard us on a daily basis, from computers and television to traffic and loud music, coloring is a chance to turn down the volume and delve into our own mind, body and spirit.”
In 2013, Pearl was invited to partake in a show by the Ajijic Society of the Arts (ASA). Realizing that black-and-white drawings typically don’t sell, she experimented with printing 24 of her most recent drawings and turning them into coloring books, which she sold at the ASA show. At other ASA events, she would set up a table and display pages from these books along with a variety of colored pens, and invite people to color.
“Art and artistic expression is what motives me,” says Pearl. “At my classes we don’t discuss politics or engage in the usual small talk. Instead, we work with our own process, and the communication level starts to change. It’s a phenomenal thing to witness and easy to see why coloring is a tool for creative expression. I believe that so much of making art is about taking the fear out of it.”
Pearl is amazed at how creative even “non-creative” people can be when they are given permission to express themselves artistically.
“Those who tell me they can’t do art are learning how to be more comfortable with various art forms. They’re seeing that the coloring process is a wonderfully expressive outlet. Plus, when people are given the chance to create art, they naturally develop a new appreciation for art.”
Nadananda has been in Pearl’s coloring workshop since its inception last November.
“Coloring has kick-started me back into my art, something I haven’t done for 30 years,” she says. “And I just keep on improving. Not only is the process calming and meditative, but I get inspired by what others in the group are creating.”
Having lived in Ajijic for 15 years, Pearl senses an incredible phenomenon taking place in the village.
“Many people are aware that Ajijic is a popular retirement destination. Yet, with all of the amazing talent packed into this small village, it’s time that people see it as an artistic destination, as well.”
This observation has inspired her latest project, “Pueblo Artistico” – a marketing tool that will help bring Ajijic worldwide recognition as an artistic village.
“Ajijic is filled with great music, theater, dance and art,” says Pearl. “Therefore, how can one not love and want to promote this place, with all its artistry?”
Brainstorming with Pearl on this ambitious project is Greg Custer, an Ajijic expat who, along with his wife Jane, has worked in Mexican tourism for 30 years.
Says Custer: “Our idea for branding Ajijic as ‘Pueblo Artistico’ gives Mexico yet another niche product to build a more positive image of itself to international markets. We intend to bring a cultural focus to Ajijic, putting artists back at the center of the village.”
Adds Pearl: “Pueblo Artistico is honoring the Mexicans and expats who have brought lifeblood and color to this area; those who have transformed our village through their art and their hearts, passion and intuition. Through their efforts, they’ve helped create an understanding of our differing cultures, thus helping to transcend borders.”
Diane Pearl Colecciones, Colón 1, Ajijic. Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..">This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..