A children’s picture book shall not simply dictate their behaviour – it is far more than “what is right and what is wrong”. This project is based on my own obsession with the infamous German children’s picture book, Der Struwwelpeter – an iconic book with its famous violent visuals to scare children. Regarding children’s psychology, Rousseau adds, “and you will see that they [the children] almost always do something contrary to the author’s intention” . The old value of didacticism along with violence and scare tactics has been diminished over time. Today, Der Struwwelpeter and similar children’s picture books are no longer used as a means to teach children how to behave. Thus most of the children’s picture books nowadays only consist of a narration and stick to a single ideology. A picture should stand for itself, a text should not dictate the existing image and, therefore, I should like to see what happens if a narration consists of nothing but images. The images are presented in non-concrete forms, combined with free, nonlinear stories that could initiate a mutual interaction between parents and children. My goal is to render the content as open as possible, yet preserve the basis of common knowledge – which, in my opinion, is the most important aspect for the growth of children – such as the introduction of objects, nature, and humanity, or even morbid subjects such as life and death.

Jordan Marzuki
jordan@theballetcats.com, www.theballetcats.com
 

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