Over 100 museums and libraries worldwide have provided free coloring pages for download thanks to the New York Academy of Medicine’s #ColorOurCollections initiative.
Get out your pencils, crayons, watercolors — or smartphone with stylus and drawing app — to #ColorOurCollections. Download our historical coloring books at https://t.co/3euTygtyYO https://t.co/EEZMYwtrDk pic.twitter.com/Q6qPt8fPS6
— UMN Libraries (@umnlib) March 24, 2020
The #ColorOurCollections initiative began in 2016, at the height of the adult coloring book trend, but as people find themselves homebound as they shelter in place during the COVID-19 crisis, the project is experiencing a surge in popularity.
In need of a fun weekend activity? 🙋♂️🙋♀️
Head to the @NYAMNYC page & discover their #ColorOurCollections tools & resources. Your kids & students can try coloring works from museums around the world! 🌐#COVID19 #langchat https://t.co/xpbhzSHffF pic.twitter.com/Wlm2HdgBre
— Wayside Publishing (@WaysidePublish) March 21, 2020
Each winter, the NYAM holds a week-long online festival where museums, libraries, and other institutions provide black-and-white downloadable PDFs for coloring and education. This year, the event ran from February 3–7. There were over 100 participating institutions, although you can still download coloring pages from past years’ participants.
If you are currently at home with children, Color Our Collections is a great activity that you can do using just your printer. These free coloring book pages featuring popular objects from our collection for you to paint as your own. #ColorOurCollections https://t.co/M94aDJMT2f pic.twitter.com/9UdvP18nvu
— Tennessee State Museum (@tnstatemuseum) March 24, 2020
Some of this year’s participants include Memoria Chilena (Chile), Kansai University Open Research Center for Asian Studies (Japan), the Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg (USA), Trinity Hall at Cambridge University (UK), and Bibliothèque nationale de France (France).
You can scroll a pinboard of the coloring pages at colormycollections.org to help you decide which of the hundreds of coloring pages you might download to print.