You may have heard of the adult colouring trend. In recent years, people have been reigniting their childhood passion of using markers, crayons and pencil crayons to “stay within the lines” while bringing colouring books and sheets to life.
In response to this trend, a new industry of adult-oriented colouring books has emerged. These images are often more intricate, quirky or spiritual in nature than the typical designs made for children.
But adult colouring is more than just a hobby. There are many benefits, such as:
- Colouring can impact your productivity by relieving stress, stimulating creativity and improving focus.
- Psychologist Dr. Nikki Martinez reports that colouring can effect mental, emotional and intellectual health.
- The American Art Therapy Association, the US-based organization that promotes art as a form of treatment for different conditions, shares that colouring and other forms of art can help us “explore feelings, reconcile emotional conflicts, foster self-awareness, manage behavior and addictions, develop social skills, improve reality orientation, reduce anxiety and increase self-esteem.”
Sound interesting? If so, why not start with a science-oriented foray into colouring?
CCRM recently developed four new colouring sheets for young, and young-at-heart, visitors to enjoy while participating in Doors Open Toronto, an event that invited the public to tour our new facility in the MaRS Discovery District. Our designs feature cells, stem cells and bioreactors and invite artists to draw their own scientist. You can download them here for printing. (We took some creative liberties when illustrating the cells and stem cells, so please note they’re not scientifically accurate.)
In truth, these designs were created with kids in mind, but we won’t tell. And, good news – colouring has benefits for children as well, including increasing coordination, self-regulation and self-esteem.
copyright CCRM 2017
If you have any recommendations for new designs, please share them in the comments.
Our regular feature, Right Turn, appears every Friday and we invite you to submit your own blog to info(at)ccrm.ca. We encourage you to be creative and use the right (!) side of your brain. We dare you to make us laugh! Right Turn features cartoons, photos, videos and other content to amuse, educate and encourage discussion.
As always, we welcome your feedback in the comment section.
Laine Bodnar
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