When it comes to toilets, nobody does them quite like Japan. Often times equipped with lights, multiple settings, and remote controls with more buttons than most modern day television remotes, Japan looks at toilets as a symbol of its world-renowned hospitality culture.
But even in Japan, the stigma surrounding public toilets exists; they can be dirty, stinky, and a place where one wants to spend as little time as possible. But now, thanks to The Tokyo Toilet project, 16 designers and architects from around the world are redesigning 17 public toilet locations throughout Shibuya to make it a much more pleasant experience when nature calls away from home.
Five toilet locations, including two from Pritzker Prize-winning architect Shigeru Ban, have already opened on July 31 and Aug. 7. Shigeru Ban’s designs, located in Yoyogi Fukamachi Mini Park and Haru-No-Ogawa Community Park, feature an all glass design that allows people to see from the outside if the restroom is clean, as well as if anyone is currently inside. Once a stall is locked, the glass turns opaque. At night, the restrooms light up like lanterns in the park.
Yoyogi Fukamachi mini park clear glass.
Yoyogi Fukamachi mini park opaque glass.
The restroom located in Ebisu East Park, designed by architect Fumihiko Maki, functions as both a public restroom and as a public space that serves as a park pavilion equipped with a rest area. A fourth restroom, located in Higashi Sanchome and designed by product designer Nao Tamura, features a completely red exterior with a design inspired by Origata, a traditional Japanese method of decorative wrapping. The restroom includes three separate spaces to redefine the way a public bathroom establishes personal space.
Ebisu East Park.
The fifth restroom, located in Ebisu Park and designed by interior designer Masamichi Katayama/Wonderwall, takes its inspiration from a Kawaya, a hut that stood over a river. The purposefully ambiguous space is simultaneously an object and a toilet by randomly combining 15 concrete walls. The spaces between the walls lead users into three different areas designed for men, women, and everyone.
All of the facilities will be maintained by the Nippon Foundation, the Shibuya City Government, and the Shibuya Tourism Association. The remaining facilities are tentatively scheduled to open between Sept. 7, 2020 and the end of 2021.
Higasi Sanchome.
Related Stories
| Nov 8, 2013
Oversized healthcare: How did we get here and how do we right-size?
Healthcare facilities, especially our nation's hospitals, have steadily become larger over the past couple of decades. The growth has occurred despite stabilization, and in some markets, a decline in inpatient utilization.
| Nov 8, 2013
Can Big Data help building owners slash op-ex budgets?
Real estate services giant Jones Lang LaSalle set out to answer these questions when it partnered with Pacific Controls to develop IntelliCommand, a 24/7 real-time remote monitoring and control service for its commercial real estate owner clients.
| Nov 8, 2013
S+T buildings embrace 'no excuses' approach to green labs
Some science-design experts once believed high levels of sustainability would be possible only for low-intensity labs in temperate zones. But recent projects prove otherwise.
| Nov 8, 2013
Net-zero bellwether demonstrates extreme green, multifamily style
The 10-unit zHome in Issaquah Highlands, Wash., is the nation’s first net-zero multifamily project, as certified this year by the International Living Future Institute.
| Nov 8, 2013
Walkable solar pavement debuts at George Washington University
George Washington University worked with supplier Onyx Solar to design and install 100 sf of walkable solar pavement at its Virginia Science and Technology Campus in Ashburn, Va.
| Nov 6, 2013
PECI tests New Buildings Institute’s plug load energy use metrics at HQ
Earlier this year, PECI used the NBI metrics to assess plug load energy use at PECI headquarters in downtown Portland, Ore. The study, which informed an energy-saving campaign, resulted in an 18 percent kWh reduction of PECI’s plug load.
| Nov 5, 2013
Net-zero movement gaining traction in U.S. schools market
As more net-zero energy schools come online, school officials are asking: Is NZE a more logical approach for school districts than holistic green buildings?
| Nov 5, 2013
New IECC provision tightens historic building exemption
The International Energy Conservation Code has been revised to eliminate what has been seen as a blanket exemption for historic buildings.
| Nov 5, 2013
Living Building Challenge clarifies net-zero definitions and standards
The Living Building Challenge has released the Net Zero Energy Building Certification to provide clearer definitions regarding what net zero really means and how it is to be achieved.
| Nov 5, 2013
Oakland University’s Human Health Building first LEED Platinum university building in Michigan [slideshow]
Built on the former site of a parking lot and an untended natural wetland, the 160,260-sf, five-story, terra cotta-clad building features some of the industry’s most innovative, energy-efficient building systems and advanced sustainable design features.
