Coloring and painting: new trends for stress relief

Drawing a picture has become a trendy way for Chinese office workers to alleviate stress. [File photo]

Adult coloring books are enjoying a boom, and can be found among the top five best-selling books on Amazon and major shopping websites in the country.

More and more stressed-out white-collar workers say they want to benefit from the quiet zen that a coloring book can bring.

"I saw more and more posts on my WeChat timeline and was attracted to the books. Then I decided to order one online."

"I spend time coloring every day after I go home from work, and also on weekends. I didn't have anything to do at home before. Now I feel a great sense of achievement after finishing each page."

Coloring books are already out of stock at some stores in downtown Beijing and Shanghai.

Customers have to wait to about three days before the next batch arrives.

Sales of colored pencils are also in high demand.

Meanwhile, another method for stress relief and creativity recall is growing in popularity: Art Jams.

Go to a painting studio; pick up a brush in one hand, and a color palette in another, a non-professional artist can finish a work within several hours, under the instruction of the art teacher.

Zhu Jiang is a white collar worker in Beijing who got dozens of Likes under her painting on WeChat.

"I saw a friend of mine posted a picture drawn by others in Wechat timeline. I think it is very interesting. So I booked a drawing board in a studio of Art Jams. The experience turned out to be very refreshing. The last time I drew a picture was in primary school. This is the very first art creation in the past over 10 years. But the result satisfied me very much."

Professor Peng Kaiping, the Dean of Department of Psychology at Tsinghua University, raves about the stress-relieving effects of coloring and painting.

"All kinds of creating activities can bring positive and happy feelings to us. As soon as we begin to do some creative works including painting, our brain will change into another mode of imagination and expectation, which will make us feel good. And after the creative activity, you will feel rewarding. This kind of sense of accomplishment is another source of happiness."