Written by Julia Sørensen, the author and illustrator of Marcel with a Splash.

My artistic work has always been somewhere between text and image. What particularly interests me is the articulation between those elements: the relationship between writing and drawing. Children’s books offer an incredible space for experimenting with this relationship, and although my work has tended to take the form of poetry books or art installations with text, I’ve long been drawn to children’s literature, and more particularly to picture books.

And then Marcel arrived, with a “splash.” We learned at birth that he had Down syndrome. I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t a shock, but the joy outweighed the sadness, because we found out that even as a baby, he already had quite a sense of humor. He’s a lively, ultra-curious boy who feeds off every possible social interaction. We don’t have any other children, and felt it was important for him to be in contact with his peers as soon as possible. He started going to the village daycare a few mornings a week. 

For the first few years, the other children did not see Marcel as different from themselves. Then there were those developmental milestones, which he took longer to reach than they did. The older kids would start asking why he wasn’t walking yet, why he drooled so much, why he looked the way he did, or why they couldn’t understand him as he talked. Adults were often uncomfortable, and didn’t really know how to answer these questions, especially in front of us.

So, I started looking for children’s books on the subject. I found a few, some of them very beautiful, but none of them exactly what I wanted to convey. That’s why I started writing one myself.

The first version of the text was very explanatory and educational. I soon had very specific ideas for the illustrations. I created stamps to represent the chromosomes, and then I built up the rest of the illustrations around them using different techniques. I showed this project to a publisher who was immediately interested in the subject and the drawings but didn’t find the text compelling. I then thought about simplifying things and telling a slice-of-life story. To let Down syndrome be present and named, but not have it take up all the space. And I submitted the new version of the text to the editor, who was thrilled.

It took me a total of six years to complete this book as it is today. Meanwhile, Marcel was growing up. He wanted to take part in the creation, and I integrated elements from him. He’s very proud to be in a book and likes to show it to the families around us. He even brought it into his classroom when it was published. We read it together once. He was very attentive, then never wanted to read it again. He preferred to listen to the audio version made by a library here. 

A photo of an illustration from Marcel with a Splash showing Marcel making a silly face at the camera while wearing snow gear. 

The book made its own way — it was included in an incredible birth suitcase project by a non-profit organization called Premier pas, and given to many families with newborn babies with Down syndrome in Switzerland. The French edition is now out of print, but we hope to be able to reprint it next year.

Today, Marcel is eleven years old. He continues to attend “ordinary” school, with support. Inclusive schooling in Switzerland is still a work in progress. The end of the book resonates more than ever as Marcel loves going to school but doesn’t always agree to work. I really wish he could show his disagreement from time to time without it immediately calling into question his place in school and therefore in society.

A photo of Marcel drawing in a notebook.

As for any kid, becoming a teenager has its ups and downs. Marcel finds socializing in large groups challenging, but he goes about it well, and has managed to keep very good friends like Mélodie. They often drive us nuts when they are together! By now he has also befriended other children with Down syndrome and is very close to a boy named Matthias, who is two years older and lives in another town.

Marcel has amazing social skills and shows real interest in people and their connections: he remembers the name of every person he meets, he loves to know everything about everyone’s family tree and he invites as many people as possible to the house for dinner. At the end of the day, he is the one helping his introverted parents to have an amazing social life! 

Click to learn more about Marcel with a Splash.