40 Times Adults Ruined Kids’ Coloring Books (New Pics)

The r/ColoringCorruptions subreddit currently has 176K followers of the twisted artworks. I wanted to find out how it got started and who the diabolical mastermind behind the idea was.

I spoke to the founder of r/ColoringCorruptions, who goes by the username 'CrayonsForBrains'. They told Bored Panda the story behind the page. “One day, I was hanging out with my cousin and glancing through a coloring book she had while we chatted,” they told us. “I started chuckling because some of the characters were just so crazy looking. The next natural step was to bring the psychotic energy that I saw in their eyes to life!” 

Creating art is one thing, but if no-one else sees it, did you really make it? Rather than letting their drawings become lost to time, CrayonsForBrains knew that they had to share with others. They asked their nearest and dearest for opinions on the first pieces of corrupted artwork. 

The founder of the page said, “My family and friends thought the few I’d made were darkly humorous (my family is great if you couldn’t tell), so I just kept going.”

And with this encouragement, they felt they had to share the artworks even more. “As a regular Reddit user, I realized there were probably a lot of others out there who would get a kick out of it. So, I made our website and started the subreddit,” they explained.

The subreddit community continues to grow with more twisted takes on coloring pages. I wondered what spurs the creators of the content to make these artworks. CrayonsForBrains gave me their opinion on it.

“Coloring is already sort of therapeutic and enjoyable. When you throw in some sick humor, it’s even better,” they said. Coloring is definitely gentle and relaxing, even if these corrupted versions evoke anything but those emotions.

As you can see, the artworks can be quite gruesome and bloody. So, should we be worried about the creators and followers of the page?

CrayonsForBrains doesn’t think so. They said this about it: “I think as a community, people just enjoy the shock value, the laughs, and sharing in some harmless fun. Life can be such a dark place, so it’s nice to bring some levity. And of course, seeing everyone’s reactions is always a treat.” 

The founder of r/ColoringCorruptions is thankful that the community is still going strong. They told Bored Panda how appreciative they are: “To everyone who has participated, it’s been so much fun, thank you for sharing your weirdness with us all. I’m happy to have had a hand in making it.”

Many of our own Pandas will have fond memories of making their own masterpieces with coloring books. So, how come coloring books are so commonplace and part of most people’s childhood?

Well, they have more benefits of just being fun to work on. According to Michael Rhattigan, the CEO of Adventure to Fitness, a leading children's media company whose mission is to make health and education fun for kids, coloring books are incredibly important for early-age development. They teach kids to develop focus, essential motor skills and hand-to-eye coordination.

These are skills we might take for granted as an adult, but something we once had to practice as a child. The next time you pick up a pencil and write your name, think back to when you had to learn how to even hold a pencil properly.