By: AJ Crowell, Dallas Yoga Magazine Publisher & Yoga Enthusiast

I met Pete Taboada of Living Dream Art Studio at Plano’s Holistic Festival in December. As I was walking by Pete’s booth, I was drawn immediately to his brightly colored art work. It was as if it was glowing with energy so I had to venture over and take a closer look. That’s when I realized that Pete’s art did have a true radiance it was “Crystal Infused.” Pete’s vivacious rainbow colored pictures had crystals immersed in the magic of the art. It was not my imagination, it literally was energized!

I was inspired and bought a print from Pete of a purple and blue silhouette of a yogi with a lotus flower at the base and OM symbol at the heart center (see photo). If you looked at the crown chakra you can see where Pete placed the crystal in the original artwork. I later was informed the print I had chosen was an actual piece of artwork on display at Yoga on Main Street in Frisco. This particular picture has a unique story that I will share with you later in the article.

Immediately after meeting Pete, I knew I wanted to share his talents with the readers. We recently met for an interview and I’m honored to share his story and inspirations.

When I asked Pete how he created his pieces using the crystals and how he captured the energy, Pete shared, ” I listen. I remember I had this amethyst piece about 5 inches tall and an inch and half wide. I had it for years and don’t even know where I got it from. I was holding the crystal in my hand and I heard it tell me ‘put me in a canvas’. So I listened…I try my best to be in tune with nature. I listen and allow myself to hear.”

While he was communicating with the crystal he was able to see the flows of color and energy and he just allowed everything to come naturally. He continued, “Crystals are their own little beings and some I can just tell want to be a part of an art piece while others you have to ask permission.” Recently, someone had given Pete a crystal and he knew it was not meant for one of his art works, but was meant to be with him. He fashioned a wire surrounding the crystal and wears it close to his heart on a leather string. Pete explained it doesn’t take him long to connect with the crystals and almost immediately knows what message the crystal has and what to do with it.

Pete’s crystals come from far and wide to be a part of his visions. He finds them at holistic festivals, shops and sometimes people gift him crystals. He likes to purchase his crystals in person because of the one-on-one connection he has with them. “The energy and vibration is what draws me to the crystals and I have to feel that in person,” shared Pete.

One example Pete shared about choosing specific crystals for his pieces was, “I know when crystals want to be in my art because I hear a loud dinner bell ringing and sometimes they won’t leave me alone until they are aware they will be infused into one of my next pieces.”

Pete explained more about the process of his creations, “When you are in the flow you just go in there and start, you don’t think of anything else and then you are finished and it’s like, WOW, all that just happened? I just did that? It could be anything a mural, a piece of art or a sculpture.”

His larger pieces are often created on reclaimed wood depending on the size of the crystals. Canvases can usually only hold smaller ones so the larger crystals need to be displayed on wood for the support.

Pete revealed to me he has started doing live painting exhibits during yoga and meditation classes. At first, he was reluctant because it was something brand new to his creative process and he was worried about disturbing the people. But once he started painting during classes, the energy encouraged him and surged through him to create his art pieces. “I did live painting during a yoga class at Yoga on Main Street in Frisco and my final picture turned out very different from my original plans. The OM chanted at the end of class impacted me…so I added the OM symbol along with other details that were inspired from the class.” This was the print I had purchased from him and discussed earlier in the article (see photo).

During our interview, we found we had a mutual friend, Katherine from Chikitsa in Richardson. Pete explained he has a painting on display there (see photo) with heart shaped crystals. He believes the crystals for Katherine’s studio are for protection. For the Yoga Studios where Pete has artwork, he encourages the owners to put their intentions into the pieces during the mountings. He said, “It’s so important for us to learn to use our own energy powers.”

One of Pete’s largest pieces can be found at Lightworker’s Sanctuary in The Colony (see photo). Once he painted the picture and left it to dry for the evening, he asked his friends at the Sanctuary to put some crystals on it where they desired and explained he would come back and complete the finishing touches. He showed up to complete the project and was amazed because they had incorporated their own crystals into the picture and the crystals were everywhere! He wasn’t expecting so many and had never used such an array of crystals in one piece of artwork before. Pete was delighted with the finished product and loved the fact that the Sanctuary often uses the picture for healing and guidance during Reiki and yoga classes.

Pete also creates custom work and helps people manifest their intentions into their life with the art. It could be relationships, business, healing or whatever intention someone has. He states, “I know people who are attracted to what I do are into self-help, holistic practices and intuition. They understand what the art does for them.”

Pete’s new focus is on “Epic Journey Pieces” which are larger canvases for offices, yoga studios, homes and meditation rooms. He explains, “Once again, I encourage the purchasers to put their intention into the paintings. Throughout the day when they look at the picture it will bring them back to balance and if they are having a rough day they can move past it. You can’t ignore the picture because it will be right there reminding them what’s really important in life and prompting them to remember their intentions.”

Dallas Yoga Magazine will be featuring Pete in our upcoming booth at Yoga on the Bridge on March 4th. We encourage everyone to stop by and meet him and see his work first hand.

Pete will be at the Fort Worth Holistic Festival on January 8th held at the Stockyards. You can also find him at Celebration of Life at Lightworker’s Sanctuary in The Colony on January 14th.

Find more information:
http://petetaboada.com
http://livingdreamartstudio.com/
Face Book: https://www.facebook.com/visionaryartistpete
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCq8NI2iClH1lj1q-cLRzZRg
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/visionaryartistpete/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SpiritualArtPT