Everything in this garden is rosy

A new coloring book has become the rage among adults, because they believe coloring in the pictures helps them relax. But are they right? asks LI YANG

A coloring book for grown-ups, Secret Garden, by Scottish illustrator Johanna Basford has sold more than 1 million copies in China since in June, becoming the bestseller with the fewest words - only 264 Chinese characters - according to Hinabook, its first Chinese publisher.

Describing herself as "an illustrator and ink evangelist who prefers pens and pencils to pixels", Basford said in an interview with NPR early this year: "I think there's something quite charming and nostalgic about coloring in."

Many of her Chinese readers describe her book as "a pressure-reducing valve" that helps people "recover from depression".

"There is something mysterious about coloring in that lets me slow down from the fast life and forget about some daily routines," says Li Yaming, a 34-year-old middle school teacher in Guangzhou, Guangdong province.

"Every reader is actually a 'co-author' of the book, or a gardener, when we participate in the 'gardening' process with Basford. In the participative reading, I feel I walk into a secret garden, and I become its owner when the whole coloring in is complete," Li says.

"The graphic patterns of plants and animals put me into nature, awaken my childhood memories, and intrigue my passion to explore the beauty of the world," says Wen Wen, a real-estate sales agent in Harbin, Heilongjiang province. Characterizing her life as stressful, the 30-year-old Wen adds: "That's why Secret Garden is more than a book to me. I am simply addicted to it. Coloring in is a creative process that concentrates my spirit and calms my nerves."

Yuan Xin, a psychologist at Tianjin-based Nankai University, explains that colors people use reflect their understanding of life, and coloring in can give rise to curiosity and a sense of feeling good. "The book gives people a short moment of tranquility and inner peace, and the 'white space' on a Secret Garden page represents the space in modern people's heart. They feel a strong sense of control and self-fulfillment while coloring in the space on paper," Yuan says.

Carl Jung, psychotherapist and founder of analytical psychology, was one of the first psychiatrists to say that coloring in can relieve mental stress. According to Jung, people can express their feelings of happiness or sorrow by choosing and using different colors.

In an interview with jiemian.com in August, Yang Baoyun, an editor with Hinabook, said: "Helping readers relieve their pressure is a selling point of Secret Garden abroad. Yet we have not emphasized that point while promoting the book in China. My understanding is that the book does make you feel better, because coloring in slows down your life."

It takes about 20 hours for careful readers to fill in all the colors of a single picture in the book. In the process, a reader can learn the importance of gradient ramp, color matching and light sensation.

"It's very difficult for people today to focus attention on one thing," says Sun Haoming, a painter in his 70s in Jinan, Shandong province. "The coloring book doesn't have the magic that the media ascribe to it. It's no different from shopping, eating and physical exercise.

As long as you focus on one thing, you will forget the unhappy things." It took him four days to fill in the colors of the patterns in one picture of the book.

Social media, too, have played a role in boosting the book's popularity. Secret Garden's lovers share photographs of their "works" on WeChat, the most popular social media network in China. Thanks to social media, the coloring book appears to satisfy some of people's needs, say experts.

"The empty space on the paper creates room for imagination. Every color I fill in the space makes the painting a unique work of art," says Zhou Sheng, a lawyer in Heze, Shandong province, said.

According to the 38-year-old lawyer, "After hours, I completed the coloring in and showed it to my friends. When they praised my work, I felt proud ... It is really beyond my expectations ... crayons (have) become so important for me at my age."

In an interview with Shenyang Evening News earlier this month, Zhang Qiu, a Beijing-based artistic behavioral therapist and consultant psychologist, said: "Artistic behaviors have therapeutic values. Clinically, painting, pottery making, music, singing and dancing are artistic therapeutic means that are often used to relieve patients' anxiety and depression symptoms. For adults, coloring in is also an artistic behavior and has positive therapeutic values ... (it can) treat their psychological sub-health conditions."

Unlike the tranquilizing Secret Garden, a new coloring book for adults featuring scary zombies, amputated limbs, internal organs and blood became an instant hit in Brazil after its launch in August. The book was published in Taiwan in late September, and readers say coloring in the zombie patterns eases their anxiety and the anger accumulated in heart.

But some people don't see any therapeutic value in coloring in pictures and patterns. Zhu Hongli, an office clerk in Shanghai, says her anxiety builds up, because it takes several hours to fill in all the colors in one picture. "I always think that there are so many things to do when I'm coloring in the innumerable little spaces, and matching the right colors is also a 'brain-exhausting' exercise."

Some doctors, too, warn of the negative impact of coloring in pictures for long hours, such as cervical spondylosis and shortsightedness. And for most people, regular exercise is better than coloring books to maintain physical and mental health.

(China Daily USA 10/05/2015 page11)