Gijs van der Most: Remarkable Photography Career, Business, Marriage and Family Life

Gijs van der Most is a Dutch photographer and entrepreneur known for his work in editorial and documentary photography as well as his involvement in the Brooklyn furniture business Van der Most Modern. Outside creative and design circles, he is widely recognized as the husband of comedian, actress, writer and producer Michelle Buteau.

While Buteau works in front of cameras and on stage, van der Most has spent much of his professional life behind the camera. His background combines photography, visual design and an interest in vintage furniture. This profile looks at the parts of his biography that can be reliably documented, including his education, career, marriage and family life.

Quick Bio

Detail	Information
Full name	Gijs van der Most
Profession	Photographer and entrepreneur
Nationality/background	Dutch
Education	Photographic design at HKU in Utrecht
Professional base	Brooklyn, New York
Business	Van der Most Modern
Spouse	Michelle Buteau
Married	2010
Children	Twins Hazel and Otis

Who Is Gijs van der Most?

Gijs van der Most is a Netherlands-born creative professional whose career has centered on photography and design. He lived in Amsterdam before building his career in the United States, including periods connected with Los Angeles and New York. His professional profile has also linked him with Brooklyn through Van der Most Modern.

His name now appears frequently in searches connected with Michelle Buteau, but his creative career is separate from his wife’s entertainment work. He studied photography before becoming professionally established and has produced editorial and documentary images for years.

That distinction is useful because online profiles sometimes reduce van der Most simply to “Michelle Buteau’s husband.” His documented career shows a broader professional identity involving photography, furniture and visual design.

Gijs van der Most’s Dutch Background and Education

Van der Most was born in the Netherlands and spent years in Amsterdam before establishing his life in the United States. He studied photographic design at the Utrecht School for Arts, now commonly known by the abbreviation HKU. His professional profile lists attendance at HKU from 2000 to 2005.

That education helps explain the visual thread running through his later career. Photography became his main professional field, but his interest in form, composition and aesthetics also appears in his work with furniture and interiors.

What About Gijs van der Most’s Age?

An exact date of birth is not consistently established by the strongest available sources. Some entertainment and biography websites publish specific birth years or dates, but those claims conflict with one another.

For that reason, an exact age should not be presented as confirmed unless a reliable primary source establishes it. What is well documented is his Dutch background, his education in Utrecht and his professional career. This distinction is important because repeated information online is not automatically verified information.

Gijs van der Most’s Photography Career

Photography is the clearest part of van der Most’s professional biography. Reliable reporting indicates that he began working professionally as a photographer in January 2008. His photographs have appeared in publications including PEOPLE, Esquire, Men’s Health and Fast Company.

There is independent evidence of that editorial work. An archived November 2012 Esquire feature, written by Mike Sager, credits Gijs van der Most for photography. Men’s Health has also published articles carrying his photo credit.

His work is not limited to traditional magazine assignments. An earlier Citylikeyou profile described his photography as direct and personal, with a particular interest in people, their behavior and the environments around them.

His Documentary Projects

The same profile names several documentary series associated with van der Most:

• Used Car Salesmen
• Yard Sales
• Sign Jugglers
• I ♥ Runyon Canyon

These subjects reveal an interest in everyday environments rather than only highly polished commercial scenes. Used-car lots, neighborhood sales, roadside workers and Los Angeles recreation may appear ordinary, but they offer opportunities to document personality, place and human behavior.

That observational approach is one of the more interesting parts of his work. His photography has included professional editorial assignments, but his personal projects show an interest in the visual details of everyday life.

From Photography to Van der Most Modern

Van der Most also developed a career around furniture and design through Van der Most Modern. The furniture business has been associated with both van der Most and Michelle Buteau, and its collection has included pieces personally sourced from the Netherlands.

A Trendland feature identifies Gijs van der Most as the founder and owner behind the business and describes its focus on an eclectic collection of mid-century furniture and décor. The publication also connected his photographic background with the way he responds to furniture visually.

His professional profile associates him with Van der Most Modern, while the company’s website identifies him as a contact for its furniture inventory.

Photography and furniture may appear to be two different fields, but they rely on some of the same instincts. Composition, shape, proportion, texture and visual balance matter both when creating an image and when selecting a distinctive piece of furniture.

How Did Gijs van der Most Meet Michelle Buteau?

Gijs van der Most and Michelle Buteau met in 2008. Buteau has discussed the beginning of their relationship publicly, explaining to the Television Academy that what initially seemed likely to be a casual encounter developed into a long-distance relationship lasting about two years.

The couple came from different countries and were building careers that required travel. Van der Most was developing his photography work, while Buteau was performing stand-up comedy around the United States.

In an April 2026 PEOPLE interview, Buteau reflected on how long van der Most had been part of her professional journey. She said he supported her during the years when she was traveling extensively for comparatively small comedy bookings, well before her later television, film and Netflix success.

Gijs van der Most and Michelle Buteau’s Marriage

The couple married in July 2010. Their marriage therefore predates many of the projects that made Michelle Buteau a widely recognized name in television and comedy.

Their relationship has occasionally become material for Buteau’s stand-up, particularly the cultural differences between an American comedian with Jamaican and Haitian family roots and her Dutch husband.

In 2026, Buteau told PEOPLE that communication remains important in their marriage. She also described van der Most as someone who believed in the larger possibilities of her career before she could fully see them herself.

Van der Most sometimes appears with Buteau at industry events, including premieres and awards ceremonies, but he generally maintains a much lower public profile than his wife.

Their Children and Journey to Parenthood

Gijs van der Most and Michelle Buteau are parents to twins named Hazel and Otis, who were born through surrogacy in 2019.

Buteau has spoken openly about the difficult fertility journey that came before their children were born. She underwent IVF treatments, and she has credited van der Most with encouraging her to consider surrogacy when the process was taking a serious physical and emotional toll.

Their different approaches to parenting have also appeared in Buteau’s writing and comedy. She has characterized herself as the more cautious parent and her Dutch husband as more relaxed, presenting the contrast with humor rather than as a serious conflict.

A Creative Career Outside the Celebrity Spotlight

What makes van der Most’s story different from many celebrity-spouse profiles is that he had an established creative direction of his own. He studied photographic design, built a professional photography career and later became involved in a furniture company centered on vintage and mid-century design.

An older Citylikeyou profile also records his involvement in the collaborative project van der THIS!, created with Buteau as a combination of photography and comedy. At the time, the profile also connected him with photo-editing work and the Los Angeles photography community.

His career has therefore crossed several visual disciplines rather than following a single path. Photography remains the strongest documented foundation, while furniture and design became another outlet for the same interest in visual character.

Career Timeline

Period	Documented milestone
2000–2005	Studied at HKU in Utrecht
2008	Began working professionally as a photographer
2008	Met Michelle Buteau
2010	Married Michelle Buteau
2010s	Produced editorial and documentary photography
2010s	Developed Van der Most Modern
2019	Became a father to twins Hazel and Otis
2020s	Continued his connection with photography and design

The timeline is based on his professional profile, publication credits and interviews involving Buteau.

Why Gijs van der Most Attracts Public Interest

Interest in Gijs van der Most comes from two overlapping stories. One is his relationship with a successful comedian and television personality. The other is his own career in photography and design.

Searches about him often focus on his wife, children, age or nationality, but his professional record deserves equal attention. Published photography credits, formal arts education and Van der Most Modern provide a clearer picture of who he is than speculative personal details found on low-quality biography sites.

That is also why caution matters when writing about his private life. Reliable information exists about his marriage, children, education and work, but many details about his childhood, parents, exact birth date and personal finances are not strongly documented in authoritative public sources.

Gijs van der Most is therefore best described as a Dutch photographer and entrepreneur whose career combines visual storytelling with an interest in design. His marriage to Michelle Buteau brought his name to a wider audience, but photography and furniture remain important parts of his own professional identity.

Also Read: Chad Lowe: Remarkable Life of an Emmy-Winning Actor

FAQ

Who is Gijs van der Most?

Gijs van der Most is a Dutch photographer and entrepreneur. He has worked professionally in photography since 2008 and is also associated with the Brooklyn furniture business Van der Most Modern. He is married to comedian and actress Michelle Buteau.

What does Gijs van der Most do for a living?

He works in photography and design. His photographs have appeared in publications including Esquire and Men’s Health, while his business activities include Van der Most Modern, which focuses on furniture and décor.

Who is Gijs van der Most’s wife?

His wife is Michelle Buteau, an American comedian, actress, writer and producer. They met in 2008 and married in 2010.

Does Gijs van der Most have children?

Yes. Gijs van der Most and Michelle Buteau have twins named Hazel and Otis, born via surrogacy in 2019.

Where is Gijs van der Most from?

He is from the Netherlands. He lived in Amsterdam and studied photographic design at HKU in Utrecht before developing his career in the United States.

How old is Gijs van der Most?

A reliable exact birth date has not been consistently confirmed by strong primary or major-media sources. Different biography websites publish conflicting information, so presenting a specific age as established fact would be misleading.