The room and Gijs’ identity

The plethora of eye-catching objects in Gijs’ room all tell varying stories about different parts of Gijs’ life. But they all fall under the common denominator of his life: they are displayed throughout his room and Gijs acknowledges that his room is thus a reflection of himself. The natural and instinctive manner in which Gijs has adorned his room, along with the personal character of many of the objects, make the interior markedly expressive.

Gijs himself furthers the analogy between the room and his identity. In his view, both the room and his own identity are malleable, while also maintaining a core that is less mutable. “Changing your entire personality in one time is very hard, if not impossible, but you can change qualities of yourself, just as I can remove or add objects in my room.” Comparing personal qualities to parts of an interior is quite striking. We could envision one’s identity to the scope of a room, and the constituents of one’s identity become the objects in that room. Interacting with those objects can then reflect how one feels about their personal qualities. Taking something off the wall, trying to make a new piece, wanting to destroy something old or admiring something new, for Gijs it works the same on a personal level. But just as one cannot just change the intricate fibres of an interior, parts of one’s identity will not change either.

In his room, Gijs notices how this is epitomized by what he calls the “organized chaos”. The diverse collection of fashion, tattoos, emotional valuables, artistic creations, The Hague totems, manifold collectibles and all-round paraphernalia naturally reflect Gijs’ interests and undertakings in life. But their mishmash composition also echoes the fibres of Gijs himself, where he finds the various facets and stories of his life interweaving to form the patchwork that is his identity. Furthermore, the stylization of the room’s chaos sheds light on the way we construct narratives about our identity as well. We might be a patchwork of stories, thoughts and beliefs, and we stylize that patchwork to become a coherent and meaningful whole too. Just as the contrasting objects that Gijs has collected share the intricate link to his room and his personality, the stories that these objects tell make Gijs into the man he is today.