Puerto Vallarta Through the Eyes of an Artist

Kathleen Carrillo and the Art of Seeing Puerto Vallarta Slowly

At Petit Joys, we are always looking for the small moments that make Puerto Vallarta feel more personal. Sometimes those moments are found in something you can hold — a handmade gift, a local flavor, a small object that carries the hands and story of the person who made it. But often, a petit joy is not an object at all. It is a conversation, a gallery you almost walked past, a walk through the Romantic Zone at golden hour, or the feeling of seeing a familiar city through someone else's eyes.

Puerto Vallarta reveals itself slowly. Not only through its beaches or sunsets — though those are extraordinary — but through the people who create here. The hands behind the work. The stories behind the places. The quiet details most visitors walk past without knowing what they have missed.

That belief is what led us to Kathleen Carrillo: an internationally recognized Mexican American fine artist whose gallery in the Romantic Zone has become part of Puerto Vallarta's creative heartbeat. Kathleen specializes in painting and printmaking, holds a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Oklahoma, and brings more than 30 years of professional practice to a body of work collected across Mexico, the United States, Europe, and Latin America.

Her exhibition history spans cities as varied as Miami, Paris, New York, Santa Fe, Lima, and San Diego. Her work has been shown at Art Basel Miami CONTEXT, the Fred Jones Museum of Art, Lincoln Jazz Center, and Artitude Gallery in Paris, among many others. But what makes Kathleen's story especially moving is not the resume. It is what brought her here.

Kathleen grew up in California with a father she adored — a man who had changed the family name from Carrillo to Frederick to escape the discrimination he had faced, and who never told his children about their Mexican heritage. Years later, Kathleen began searching for that hidden part of herself. She traveled through Latin America for two years, looking for something she couldn't quite name. She found it in Puerto Vallarta.

In this conversation, Kathleen shares how the city became home, what she means by "gritty elegance," what Puerto Vallarta's art walks offer visitors who do not think of themselves as gallery people, and why original art can carry the memory of a place long after the trip itself has ended.

A Conversation with Kathleen Carrillo

You've built your career across California, Sarasota, and now Puerto Vallarta. What was the moment you knew this city was actually home?

Kathleen Carrillo: It was a search for identity. I grew up in California with a father that I adored. As I got older, it became apparent that my personal identity was more complex than what I had understood as a child. My father was half Mexican, but he did not reveal that to us because of the discrimination he had experienced. Little did he know that I was yearning to understand my background.

At a very precarious time in my life as an adult, I decided to search for the meaning of my heritage by traveling through Latin American countries. After a two-year search, I discovered Puerto Vallarta. Not only was it incredibly flavorful, with a small-town feel, but it also had a vibrant art scene — exactly what I was searching for: a community with a history of Mexican culture, the beauty of the sea, the base of the Sierra Madre mountains, and a river running through it. What could be more idyllic than that?

My search had ended. I went back to Sarasota, packed up, and moved. My first adventure was creating an art retreat along the Rio Cuale, at the base of the Sierra Madre mountains, in the jungle just outside the Romantic Zone. The challenges of building a home in a small Mexican colonia were real, but the end result was magic. Sitting on the veranda, looking out at the jungle and the river below, was truly inspirational. An entire collection came from that experience — the Jungle Magic Collection.

You describe Puerto Vallarta as having "gritty elegance." What do you mean by that?

Kathleen: As you meander the streets of Puerto Vallarta — past boutique restaurants and street taco stands — you begin to understand the acceptance of a culture that has always had a sense of joy and celebration. There is room for everyone and all things.

You can sit on the street with cars bouncing along the cobblestones while someone feverishly creates your meal right before your eyes, serving you a taco from his mama's recipe with tremendous pride. Then you can take two steps and enter an elegant Japanese restaurant so refined you might think you were in New York. That contrast — that coexistence — is the flavor of where I live. It gives me the freedom to step into an imaginary world whenever I choose.

You live in Punta Negra, but your gallery is in the Romantic Zone. How do those two energies show up in your day-to-day life?

Kathleen: Punta Negra is a world of its own. As an artist, I need downtime to reflect. Living by the ocean is the most healing kind of experience you can have on a daily basis. When I come home, there is room for a deep breath and a long walk on the shore — searching for heart rocks for my collection, which is scattered in jars and baskets throughout my home.

That groundedness is what allows me to go into my studio and spin ideas out of my head, through my brush, and onto the canvas. It is the perfect balance: the stillness of the sea, and the creative energy of the Romantic Zone. One feeds the other.

For someone visiting Puerto Vallarta for the first time, what absolutely cannot be missed?

Kathleen: Certainly a morning at a beachfront restaurant — where you can arrive for breakfast on the sand with china and a tablecloth and linger there for the entire afternoon, sipping your favorite cocktail, watching the light change on the water.

And the galleries. The theater. The creative life of this city, which has grown far beyond the "small fishing village" it is often called. If you sit long enough at any beachside table, you might be lucky enough to see the indigenous dancers pass by in full costume — a reminder of where this place grew from, and what it still carries.

Puerto Vallarta's has Two Art Walk, can you tell us a bit about them?

Puerto Vallarta has two seasonal art walks, each with its own personality. In Centro Histórico, the Wednesday ArtWalk invites visitors to explore galleries through the historic center during the high season. In the Romantic Zone, the South Side Shuffle takes place every other Friday evening during the season, bringing together galleries, jewelry, fashion, dining, music, light bites, and entertainment. Together, they offer two different ways to experience Puerto Vallarta's creative life: one through the historic center, the other through the lively, layered streets of the Romantic Zone.

Kathleen: The galleries are incredibly diversified. There are galleries that exhibit Mexican artists — which helps the viewer understand the culture far more deeply — and there are works that simply make people stop and think.

The Art Walk has become one of the most culturally enriching experiences a visitor can have in Puerto Vallarta. What surprises most people is that it is not intimidating or exclusive. It is vibrant, social, welcoming, and deeply connected to the soul of the city.

Guests stroll through charming streets filled with music, candlelit restaurants, ocean air, and open galleries where artists are often present and engaging directly with visitors. Art becomes approachable and personal rather than distant or academic.

What I love most is watching people unexpectedly connect emotionally with a piece of art — because it reminds them of a place they traveled, a feeling they had, or a part of themselves they had forgotten. That is when art stops being decoration and becomes an experience.

For current dates, maps, and participating galleries, visitors can check vallartaartwalk.com for the Wednesday ArtWalk in Centro Histórico. For the Romantic Zone, the South Side Shuffle runs every other Friday during the season, typically from 6:00 to 9:00 PM, with participating galleries and businesses in the area. The South Side Shuffle lists the event as running every other Friday during the season, with participating galleries open for the walks while maintaining their own independent hours throughout the year.

You do a live painting demonstration every Friday. What does watching an artist work in real time do for the person watching?

Kathleen: There is something deeply human about witnessing the creative process unfold in real time. So much of life feels polished, filtered, and immediate. Watching an artist paint reminds people that beauty is built through layers — movement, instinct, mistakes, emotion, and discovery.

During the live demonstrations, guests often become very quiet. They begin observing differently. They see how a painting develops emotionally before it develops technically. The experience becomes almost meditative.

I also think it creates a genuine appreciation for the value of original art. When someone witnesses the energy, the years of discipline, and the emotional presence required to create a work by hand, they begin to understand that collecting art is not simply acquiring an object. It is bringing a human story into their lives.

What makes Puerto Vallarta distinct from Oaxaca or San Miguel de Allende?

Kathleen: Every major Mexican art destination has its own identity and creative language. Oaxaca carries extraordinary indigenous traditions and artisanal history. San Miguel de Allende has long attracted established expatriate artists and has a classical colonial arts culture.

Puerto Vallarta feels different because its artistic identity is still actively evolving. There is an incredible fusion happening here between Mexican heritage, international influence, hospitality, design, cuisine, architecture, music, and contemporary global culture.

What excites me most is that we are witnessing Puerto Vallarta mature into an internationally recognized arts community while still retaining authenticity, warmth, and accessibility. Artists here feel like they are helping shape the future identity of the city itself.

What does buying original art do for a person that a mass-produced gift simply cannot?

Kathleen: A meaningful work of art continues to live with you long after the trip itself is over. Unlike a typical souvenir, original art carries emotional memory, atmosphere, and personal connection. It becomes part of the rhythm of your daily life.

When someone falls in love with a painting while visiting Puerto Vallarta, they are rarely purchasing only an image. They are bringing home a feeling: the warmth of the light on the bay, the romance of the cobblestone streets, the music drifting through the Romantic Zone, the joy of travel, or a personal transformation they experienced while here.

That is why original art often becomes part of a family's legacy. It gathers meaning over time. It witnesses celebrations, conversations, milestones, and generations. Long after a vacation ends, the artwork continues telling its story.

What do you want someone to feel when they walk out of your gallery?

Kathleen: I want them to leave feeling more inspired, more emotionally connected, and more alive than when they entered.

Of course, I am grateful when someone falls in love with a painting and chooses to bring it into their life. But the deeper purpose of the gallery has never been solely about transactions. It is about creating an experience that reminds people of beauty, imagination, possibility, and emotional connection.

I want visitors to feel welcomed rather than intimidated. I want them to feel that art belongs to everyone — not only seasoned collectors. Whether someone spends five minutes or several hours in the space, I hope they leave with a sense of warmth, curiosity, and emotional resonance.

In a world that can often feel hurried, disconnected, or overwhelming, art has the ability to slow us down, reconnect us to ourselves, and remind us of the richness of being human.

Seeing Puerto Vallarta Slowly

Kathleen's story reminds us that Puerto Vallarta is not only a destination to be enjoyed with the eyes. It is a place to be felt, questioned, remembered, and slowly understood.

Her life here began with a search for identity. It became a home, a studio, a gallery, a community, and a body of work shaped by the sea, the jungle, the mountains, the streets, and the creative energy of the Romantic Zone.

This is why Petit Joys is drawn to stories like hers. We believe Puerto Vallarta is full of small, meaningful moments that deserve to be noticed. A petit joy is not always something you buy or carry in your suitcase. Sometimes it is a conversation with an artist. A painting that reminds you of a part of yourself. A walk through a gallery that changes the way you understand a city. A moment of beauty that asks you to slow down long enough to feel it.

For visitors, her work offers an invitation to look beyond the postcard. Walk into the galleries. Ask questions. Watch someone paint. Sit long enough at a beachside table to notice the dancers passing by, the light changing, the old village still breathing inside the modern city. Let the place become more than beautiful. Let it become personal.

That is when Puerto Vallarta begins to reveal itself. And that is when travel becomes something you carry home.

To learn more about Kathleen's work, gallery, workshops, and collections, visit Kathleen Carrillo Galleries in Puerto Vallarta's Romantic Zone. Olas Altas 509, Romantic Zone, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

About Kathleen Carrillo

Kathleen Carrillo is an internationally exhibited Mexican American contemporary painter and printmaker based in Puerto Vallarta's Romantic Zone. She holds both a Bachelor of Fine Arts and a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Oklahoma, with a major in painting and printmaking design. Over more than 30 years of professional practice, her work has been shown, represented, commissioned, or exhibited across Mexico, the United States, Europe, and Latin America — including Puerto Vallarta, Miami, Palm Beach, San Diego, Newport Beach, Santa Fe, New York, Charleston, Sarasota, Paris, Lima, Oklahoma City, and Fort Myers.

Her exhibition history includes Art Basel Miami CONTEXT, Art Palm Beach Contemporary, Art San Diego, New York ARTEXPO, Artitude Gallery in Paris, Bohemia Gallery in Lima, the Fred Jones Museum of Art, Goddard Art Museum, Selby Museum, Phillipi Estates Museum, Lincoln Jazz Center, and numerous solo and group exhibitions. Her work is held in public and private collections around the world. From Kathleen Carrillo Galleries in Puerto Vallarta, she creates original paintings, hand-embellished limited-edition giclée prints, commissions, workshops, and immersive art experiences that invite collectors and visitors to live more artfully.