Body + Mind + Soul = One
“Writer, artist, designer” – labels.
Trivial when relinquished as a baby, mutated Holocaust survivers genes, survived a terrorist attack, and diagnosed with a degenerative neurological disease.
Faced with your executioner, you learn to relativate things.
Having grown up in the Polder family of artist in The Hague gives an esthetic perspective. Over time interests and pursuits shifted from playing with paint via studies in physics, psychology and philosophy, to writing and (digital) design, exploring and developing the “triad of life”: a synthesis of body (art), mind (science), and soul (spirit).
As an adoptee — and diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2021 — cracks of reality emerged, stories of shadows, loss, love and longing, trying to observe and describe the evasive light in the darkness. My books (Phantom Parents, Tonic for the Bones, and more to come*) and visual work all circle that theme: finding meaning and light through adversity.
Featured Work
My recent projects:
Phantom Parents
Phantom Parents
A memoir intertwining personal narrative with philosophical inquiry, reflecting on adoption and the search for identity in pictures and words.
Published in 2023.
For sale here:
Tonic for the Bones
Tonic for the Bones
An ongoing hybrid project blending essays, visual art, and poetry, exploring life with Parkinson’s, fatherhood, and creative survival.
Due 2025
The Chosen, The Given and The Found
A boy between two mothers. A grandfather’s shadow. A legacy lost and found.
Strangely Familiar is a lyrical, soul-searching journey through memory, adoption, Jewish identity, and being human. Both intimate and universal, it explores how the past trembles through the present—and how the urge to remember can become a path to wholeness.
Due 2025/2026
What people say about my work
“This book asks to be written”
Rebecca
“The short stories and visuals intertwine with each other beautifully”
Sara
“Wonderfully crafted, leaving room for the imagination of the reader”
another reader
Yes, it is a memoir, but it’s so much more than that. Like life, it isn’t just black and white, or a Facebook approach of only sharing the happy moments. It is humorous and relatable, but also vulnerable and revealing in its search for meaning in being an adoptee. David Enker is also a talented artist and graphic designer; so naturally, the memoir is sprinkled with illustrations and photos, and there are entire sections in graphic novel format.
Kristin
FROM THE BLOG
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David Enker
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David Enker2025-06-15 18:06:142025-06-15 18:31:35Short story publishedWeb Experiences
Rothko experience
Immerse yourself in the deeply captivating artwork of Mark Rothko – animated.
The Whole Perspective
There is more 3 angles with which you can look at the world and the truth. With this tool you can see the 3 different approaches with various contentious apects.
The Standing Studio
As someone who suffers from the limitations of Parkinson’s disease, I brainstormed about a way to actively use your body to navigate in the online world. Think breakdancing whilst typing a letter.
A scientific and personal framework
A scientific approach to integrating intergenerational trauma (a Jewish/Holocaust history) and aquired trauma (adoption, surviving a terrorist attack) with Parkinson’s disease – and (the possibillity of) Healing.
SOLAR SPRINT
An online game illustrated by my (then) 6-year old son.