<p><br /> More than 200 clowns descended on Mexico City for the 6th annual clown convention.<br /> </p><p><br /> Men and women in make-up and wigs from different regions around Mexico gathered in the suburb of Xochimilco to showcase their talents, swap ideas and pick up new skills.<br /> </p><p><br /> Seminars and workshops enabled the performers to stock up on the latest and best costumes, shoes, make-up, magic tricks and wigs available in the industry.<br /> </p><p><br /> Clowns are important in Mexican culture, with thousands popping up at traffic intersections to perform tricks to earn a few pesos.<br /> </p><p><br /> According to the Latin-American Clown Association, there are some 10,000 professional clowns in Mexico, of whom 3,000 are women.<br /> </p><p><br /> Referring to the drug-related violence has claimed 23,000 lives in Mexico since 2006, "Pipucho" the clown said: "People can forget about their economic problems and problems related to violence. With so much insecurity, we try to inject joy into people so that they forget a little bit about general problems for a while."<br /> </p>
