The Law of the Heart
Here, the laws of the foster care and youth care systems are broken. Within these walls, we share a world of safety, love, friendship, and creativity. It is a counter-world to everything from the past; a world where we are finally allowed to exist. But how does such a world work with so many different co-identities?

The Functions of Love
In December 1986, the first co-identity entered my life. His name is Mark and he is only two and a half years old. I didn’t know his "function" then; I only knew I needed him. Soon, he became my mother, and he remains my mother to this day. Together, we have seen the world. I carried him through the mountains of Greece, the French Riviera, and the frozen wilderness of Swedish Lapland. His eyes saw the Mont Blanc; his hair was dusted with snow in northern storms. Every day, he was the mother I needed.

My mother (2.5 years old Mark) with baby Jimmy ( 6 months old). while a  seven years old boy takes care of us.

Oil on wood 1996

Mark on the isle of Milos (Greece) in 1988

Others followed. In 1990, a nine-month-old baby joined us—simply to "be there," mirroring the babies I used to visit in the children’s home. When I met my biological mother by chance in 1994, the complexity of that encounter required more help. Twins, Jimmy and Sterry, arrived. Jimmy became my father, Sterry was a Holy Baby.  At one point, our collective grew to thirty identities, ranging from tangible dolls from 12 cm to 80 cm. As issues were resolved, many left. For sixteen years, we remained a stable group of six.

Four of the group of six we were,  between 2000 and 2016

Photograph 2004

Tim and Alex: Friendship as Resistance
In January 2016, Tim arrived. He was special from the start, carrying the memories of both the children’s home and the house where I lived with my own mother, siblings and family- my only true home. Tim  became my friend. In this friendship, I am often an 11-year-old boy.

But Tim was lonely, so a year later, Alex arrived. His name is an act of reclamation: he is named after an eight-year-old boy who tried to play with me in foster care. Back then, having a friend was a severe crime. After that boy was sent away, I was punished with 30 lashes, the usual maximum for a severe offense  and I had to stay in the dark after school for some weeks.  Between 8 and 12 years old I received 2500 lashes and stayed prolonged periods in the darkness with half an hour daylight and one meal.   From that moment on, at age eight, I was forced into  social isolation. Any contact with other children  in the outside world was strictly  forbidden.  Now, Alex is here to play with Tim and me. He is the friend they tried to beat out of my life. Together, we play. Often.

Tim (left) with his best friend Alex (right)

The Creative Collaboration
Our world expanded when Tim and Alex saw me drawing. They wanted to draw too. They began making small oil pastel works—a joyful act of freedom, knowing no one would ever punish them for expressing themselves. I began to finish their outlines in mixed media. We now collaborate on about twenty works a year. They choose the subjects; they express their own world.

Tim draws for the  project "Tim draws back" (2025- present)

In 2024, the need for help with complex issues brought new identities. Sven, a two-year-old, recently made his first drawing, which I finished immediately. Finally, Remi arrived—a two-and-a-half-year-old who reminds us of a child we lost long ago.

Sven, the third creative co- identity holding Jimmy's first mother: Bimbam

In 2026, Tim and Alex have a baby together, who is also called Baby- Sven. They are very happy to take care of the baby. 

Alex and Tim with their baby Sven