‘Op de 4e verdieping’ explores a house with fourteen students. Through intimate photography and room tours, this temporary period of living together is exposed. This project is a portrait of the current generation of twenty-somethings, living in a way that will never be quite the same again.
Behind these walls
Isabelle’s graduation project ‘Op de 4e verdieping’ is a book and installation about temporarily living together in her student house in Utrecht. This hallway is not accessible to everyone, you must apply for a room and are only allowed to live there if you are a student.
Through organized tours of the fourteen student rooms, in which intimate questions are asked, the hidden life behind these walls is exposed. This has resulted in a publication accompanied by an installation of photographs printed on PVC sheets. These sheets measure 12 m²: the actual size of the student rooms.
‘Op de 4e verdieping’ reveals what is normally not shown to outsiders: the intimacy, the chaos, and the sense of community that arises in a home like this. This project is a celebration of having a room during this stage of life, where we first live independently and experiment with space, rhythm, and relationships. In a way that will never be exactly the same again.
About Isabelle Boiten
Her work often arises from observation. She draws inspiration from her surroundings and has a fascination with everyday life. By highlighting what is familiar, she aims to evoke a sense of recognition and create a new perspective on what is known.