If you’re like the team at Bored Panda, you spend a large portion of the week thinking about Jason Momoa. He’s cool. He’s charismatic. And who wouldn’t want to be as athletic as him? Well, there’s some great news for all of you Momoa fans out there: you can now spend some one-on-one time with the actor because artist Maurizio Campidelli released a coloring book featuring him in all of his glory.

“Crush and Color: Jason Momoa: A Coloring Book of Fantasies With an Epic Dreamboat”—that’s the coloring book’s title. It’s subtle, but see if you can spot where it goes slightly over-the-top. It took us a while to spot it, too. Scroll down for Bored Panda’s in-depth interview with Dr. Rachel Brandoff, a Creative Art Therapist from Thomas Jefferson University.

And scroll down to check out some of the 35 line art drawings you can expect to color in the book. And when you’re done looking at Momoa’s bulging muscles in this post, check out our previous articles about the superstar here (Super Bowl ad), here (pink Elvis costume), and here (Esquire photoshoot).

More info: Amazon | Facebook | Advocate Art

Jason Momoa inspired illustrator Maurizio Campidelli to create a coloring book featuring the Hollywood actor

Image credits: prideofgypsies

Inside are 35 line art drawings that you can color in

Image credits: YelyenaChord

Here’s Momoa drinking a cup of tea on his porch

Image credits: Amazon

And here he is meditating

Image credits: Amazon

According to Assistant Professor and Program Coordinator Brandoff, coloring books are not a substitute for art therapy. However, they “have some similar benefits, but the benefits of art therapy extend far beyond that which can be gotten from coloring.”

“Benefits of coloring that we have identified, both anecdotally and through research, include stress relief, distraction, mental escape, focusing or mindful engagement, and for some people enjoyment and fun.”

Brandoff continued: “While art therapy can foster these same benefits, it is more likely that a person engaging in art therapy has larger goals in mind, such as enhancing communication with self and/or others, processing trauma, facilitating decision-making, increasing self-awareness, developing coping skills, and understanding optimal and maladaptive functioning which might pertain to symptoms that tie to a life experience, relationship, loss or illness.”

Momoa walks some doggos

Image credits: Amazon

The actor looks like a real-life superhero surfing here

Image credits: Amazon

Here’s him piloting a boat…

Image credits: Amazon

…and getting kisses from a dog

Image credits: Amazon

Momoa shows off his lumberjack skills

Image credits: Amazon

“These types of goals really require the presence, guidance, and support of a trained therapist, whereas stress reduction and mental escapism are comfortably in the domain of something that one can engage in on their own at home.”

Brandoff explained to Bored Panda that both can be beneficial, but “towards different ends.”

“To help understand the difference, I use metaphors. Consider the distinction between a) owning a brush and brushing your hair at home, and b) going to a salon and having your hair cut and styled by a professional. Both are good, and both serve similar goals, but if you have a need for a professional haircut, brushing your hair at home just won’t achieve that.”

“Another metaphor could be the distinction between a) engaging in stretching at home and b) going to a chiropractor. They may seem similar in approach and goal (e.g. optimal physical functioning), and while stretching at home can have an enormous benefit and be highly recommended, if you have a pinched nerve, just stretching on your own at home may not effectively address that issue. Another example: when I have a headache, I don’t immediately go to a neurologist. I might start with taking Ibuprofen, but there are some headaches that simple over-the-counter medication will not properly treat.”

Here he is composing a letter…

Image credits: Amazon

…mowing the lawn…

Image credits: Amazon

…and taking a bubble bath after a long day of being awesome and athletic

Image credits: Amazon

According to the professor, “one way to think of this is the scaling of resources in any one domain. In the domain of art, there are many ways that people can gain benefits from engaging their creative process. One relatively simple, inexpensive, and low-commitment way to do this is through coloring books. Engaging one’s creativity within the relationship with a trained art therapist is likely to be a more thoughtful and in-depth activity with more sustained results.”

We also wanted to find out Brandoff’s opinion as to why coloring books for adults have become so popular in recent years. This is what she said: “I think that coloring books for adults have become so popular in the last decade because of a combination of marketing and nostalgia.”

Some people have already received this book as a gift and started coloring away

Image credits: YelyenaChord

“One the marketing end, there are so many different kinds of coloring books out there: ones that are funny, clever, adorable, and beautiful. These play into our personalities, interests, and things that bring us joy. There are coloring books that play into trending phenomenon like mindfulness, and books that mimic famous works of fine art. There are books that cater to animal lovers, or unicorn lovers, and I even saw your article of the Jason Momoa coloring book.”

She continued: “My colleague has a book with elaborate and ornate profanity words, and a friend had a book dedicated to her fight with cancer. There seem to be books that play to all interests, which make good gifts and gimmicks, and like everything else in our culture, if it’s sold to us well, it’s likely to do well.”

Image credits: YelyenaChord

“I think the other issue is nostalgia, which may be real or perceived. Some people loved coloring as children, or have memories of escaping into coloring pages, the clear definition of boundaries, and the freedom to maintain or to break those boundaries at will without consequences from the world or others. Coloring books allow for that freedom,” she said.

“For folks who didn’t love coloring as children, or don’t have fond memories of escaping to coloring books, it might feel like a lost opportunity that they now get to visit. There is a perceived nostalgia in connecting with activities that we think that children do or should enjoy. We get to be childlike or more spontaneous, whimsical, and in the moment when we color, which is contrary to what is often expected in adulting.”

Image credits: YelyenaChord

The coloring book is full-on Momoa, from cover to cover. There’s a picture of him surfing. And another where he’s walking some dogs. And a whole bunch of other great drawings that will inspire you to start getting your body ready for the beach.

Hypothesis: gazing upon the manly visage of the actor who played Khal Drogo, Aquaman, and Conan the Barbarian takes away all of your stress and gets rid of all of the problems in your life because he beats them into submission.

Fact: most coloring books for adults are good for your wellbeing (even if not all of them feature our savior, Momoa).

Coloring helps you focus and works like meditation

Bored Panda also spoke with M.V., a psychologist working in the healthcare system in Lithuania, about the benefits of coloring and art therapy.

According to her, the importance of coloring books for adults lies in focusing on the action itself, zoning everything else out, and not letting yourself be distracted by anything else, like someone talking to you.

The psychologist also mentioned that art therapy is very beneficial to mental health, as well as an individual’s overall wellbeing. “Any therapy that is related to arts and crafts helps reduce a person’s psychological defense mechanisms, such as denial, lying, and others. What’s more, art therapy encourages relaxation.”

Meanwhile, according to the American Art Therapy Association, art therapy helps 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.” Now, while coloring books don’t count as professional art therapy, they do provide some benefits.

Marygrace Berberian, a certified art therapist and the Clinical Assistant Professor and Program Coordinator for the Graduate Art Therapy Program at New York University, says that coloring has therapeutic potential. It can help reduce anxiety, “create focus or bring about more mindfulness.” Coloring’s similar to mediation in that it switches off our brains and makes us focus on the here-and-now, instead of overthinking things.

Momoa fans were really happy that the coloring book exists

Amazon reviews are also very positive

And if Jason Momoa is not your cup of tea, there are also other books to choose from:

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