06/07/2026
‘What is it like to be you?’ Recap of the Rooftop Sessions: The Brain
High above the city on the rooftop of the TU Library, we paused to ask a question we rarely make time for: what is it actually like to be you?
Designer and researcher Amber van Gastel invited participants into her Conversation Cabinet for a session unlike any digital exchange, one built not on words, but on images, objects and association. Using her self-developed Detailed Talks card set, participants discovered how meaning can emerge through intuition and metaphor, rather than the quick, efficient language we default to every day.
What unfolded was a beautiful reminder that no two minds see the same thing the same way. The same image sparked completely different associations, memories and feelings from person to person, and instead of resolving those differences, the group simply sat with them. Listening beyond language. Making room for multiple perspectives to exist side by side.
Amber, a neurodivergent designer who developed Detailed Talks after a late autism and ADHD diagnosis, created these cards to bridge the gap where literal language often falls short. Her session offered exactly that: a gentle, human tool for connection in a world that rarely slows down enough to allow it.
Thank you to everyone who joined us on the rooftop, slowed down, and gave their full attention - to an image, to a stranger, to themselves!
Photos by Thijs van Reeuwijk.
