Accidental artists

Mothers show photos of their paintings to prepare for the Mother Artists exhibition at 798 Art Zone in Beijing.

Attracted by the colors, she decided to join her son.

She says she uses painting as an outlet to express herself and in the process, her perspectives about life widen. She also stopped feeling anxious and loss.

"It's a game between me and my son. He likes drawing cars and we would discuss our paintings together.

"I also enjoy being part of the group. We get together to paint and share about our lives. It's like art therapy," says Chang.

Her work on display is called My Family, a picture of a house covered with snow.

"I used to hate gray clouds and cold winter. But after learning how to paint, I learn to appreciate common objects and interpret them in my own way through colors," she says, adding that she was inspired by a snowy morning during this year's Spring Festival.

Another mother, Wei Yu, 41, who has been learning painting at Chen's studio since November 2012, also says that painting cured her depression.

"I participated in some activities, such as yoga class. I even shopped a lot to make myself feel good, which turned out to be worse," she recalls.

"I thought learning painting was not for me. I attended painting classes in primary school and they were boring," says Wei, who has a 13-year-old daughter.

"But here I can paint freely and without thinking about techniques. I feel happy even when I paint a bag I carry to the supermarket every day.