Jim Høyen (born 1966)

Translator's Note: This is a machine-assisted translation completed on May 23, 2025. While care has been taken to maintain accuracy, this translation has not yet undergone human review or validation.

Høyen is educated as a business economist and has worked full-time with Gaysir since 2005. The idea for the website came from a group of friends, and the first suggested name was 'Syklubben' (The Sewing Club).

Høyen was born and raised in Bodø, but moved to Oslo at a young age. Together with friends and his partner Trygve Høiseth, he founded Gaysir. The launch took place on September 22, 2000.

Today, the website is perhaps Norway’s largest meeting place and platform for queer people. Membership is free, but they also offer paid options for those who want greater access to photo galleries and messaging.

In our interview, Høyen speaks in detail about the idea behind the site, how they got started, and how they have worked with Gaysir over the past twenty years.

Skeivt Arkiv met Jim Høyen in Oslo, November 2023. The full interview is available in our reading room.

An excerpt from the interview can be viewed in the window below, where Høyen talks about the launch of the website.