Do you know anyone else with a room covered in aluminum foil? Staff Writer Tara Terranova took a trip to McBain to chat with Warren McCombs, CC ‘23, about his unusual choice in decoration.

Yes, that’s right. Foil.

Having a living space that represents who you are and your interests is essential, and can manifest in many ways. For some, this means posters of their favorite movies, or plants strewn across their window shelf. And for others, of course, it’s buying several rolls of aluminum foil from University Hardware and covering their walls with it. As a visual arts major, it’s only natural for Warren McCombs to have a knack for the creative.

The inspiration behind what has now been dubbed as the “Foil Dungeon” by his friends is much simpler than one might imagine. While it goes without saying that having foil for walls adds a bit of eccentric spunk, what really attracted McCombs to the idea was the lack of sunlight in his room. “When I have foil on the walls, it’s like the light gets amplified during the day and so it’s really bright and that’s pleasant. The drawback of it, of course, is that at night, even the tiny little things will reflect everywhere off the foil,” said McCombs.

Another reason for the Foil Dungeon’s conception is intrusive thinking. “The idea just popped into my head and I have no filter on my intrusive thoughts and so I just act on all of them. And this was one of them.” In fact, the idea struck McCombs the day he moved into the dorm. Before he arranged any of his other belongings, he dedicated almost the entire day adorning his walls with foil.

McCombs added that one of the best parts of living in New York City is that you can buy anything — even ten rolls of aluminum foil — and no one will bat an eye.

The Foil Dungeon has received a range of reactions. “The health and safety inspectors are not a huge fan. Also, one time I was sitting in here with my door open and I was on my laptop and some guy came by and he was like ‘oh my goodness. Are you okay?’ and I was like ‘yeah I’m okay.’ He was concerned. But this is my taste.”

When asked if his dorm reflects his character as a person, McCombs responded by saying that his dorm has many sides — 21 sides as a matter of fact. One might say that the many sides represent the multiplicity of McCombs, and his ability to present himself in many ways, whether that may be as a student, friend, or foil connoisseur.

Images via Tara Terranova