This man's Christmas cards are an exercise in trolling his mother

If you're feeling like your annual Christmas card was a trifle tame this year, we might have some inspiration for you.

Imgur user John Cessna has turned a Christmas tradition on its head, and then up to 11.

Instead of sending out Christmas cards with wholesome images of decorated trees, presents, and Father Christmas, he’s opted for a more honest risqué approach.

After his mum expressed concern over his drinking habits and told him to “sober up” and send his own Christmas cards, John did just that.

The first year Cessna emailed out the Christmas card, he told indy100, his mum had responded with a less than thrilled “very funny” and shrugged off his humour.

However, by the third and fourth year, nonchalance had turned to alarm:

[My mum] and my step-dad were asking when I was going to get paid for them and if I should be putting pictures like that online when I'm looking for a job. I wasn't ready to sell out, man.

Here’s a selection of some of his most amusing creations:

2008

It was 2014’s sacrificial card that eventually won her over, and she called it “genuinely funny”. C

essna’s friends are also fans of the annual card, and have even reached out to him, asking about when they should expect it to arrive.

2009

Inspiration tends to take the form of a small joke, says Cessna, after pinging ideas off his comedian friends.

I’ll start brainstorming in October, sending messages to video/photo collaborators. Each card takes 6 weeks to put together after I’ve settled on an idea.

2010

2011

Cessna hadn’t enjoyed 2016 – both personally and politically.

2016 sucked. If you had a good year, you’re in the minority. 98 per cent of music icons died (shout out to Yanni, keeping the torch burning), the US decided to give the launch codes to a Twitter-addicted spray tan, and I lost my grandfather, who I was very close to.

2012

Come November, this all culminated in me feeling very un-funny. While the immensely talented guys who usually help me were willing, I just couldn’t come up with an idea in time to follow our usual production schedule. This year they supported me from - afar Daniel Skubal, William Cabral, Wes Cummins, and Chris Voelz. This team is far more than crew or collaborators—these images are as much theirs as they are mine.

2013

2014

2015

So here we are. I attempted to capture the ridiculous nature of our current world, channel my darkness into absurdity, and come up with an idea you might all resonate with, if not at least laugh at

2016

It resonates all right.

Post-2016, it seems Cessna may have abandoned his Christmas tradition, but you can check out more shots of his work on his Instagram page, @johncessna.

This article was originally published in December 2016