The article in the url below is interesting because it shows the power of architecture (and design, art, and public policy) to create cities that are more pleasing;
"Toilets are usually out of sight and out of mind, until nature calls. Yet it is this universality and daily use that make restrooms a lens for examining the relationship between our cities and lifestyles, with each one telling a story about a snapshot in time. One country where toilets are appreciated and openly discussed, however, is Japan, so much so that it inspired German filmmaker Wim Wenders to make a new movie about a collection of public restrooms in the Shibuya district of Tokyo."
What is so interesting about these toilets?
"The toilets examined in the film are part of The Tokyo Toilet art project, which employed 16 world-famous designers to revamp 17 public restrooms in the capital. The project's goal is to eliminate negative stereotypes about public toilets with innovative designs, modern equipment and careful upkeep, which at the same time evoke qualities such as cleanliness, meticulousness and quirkiness typically associated with Japan."
For more on the project and a list of all the toilet designs (with photos), see: https://tokyotoilet.jp/en/. The Japanese take their toilets seriously:
"In the bubble era of the 1980s, toilet maker Toto introduced the electronic Washlet, a refined version of an American-made bidet for hospital patients with hemorrhoids that the company had been importing. The Washlet is now almost synonymous with Japanese culture and is being exported all around the world, as more people come to desire the comfort and cleanliness of the product, particularly during Covid. Today, 80.3% of Japanese households contain a Washlet-type toilet, according to a Cabinet Office survey, and they are also ubiquitous in hotels, restaurants, department stores and even public restrooms like the Tokyo Toilet."
Photos of many of the toilets in the project are also displayed in the article, below.
Take care
David
David Chandler
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These Toilets in Japan Are About to Get Their Own Movie
By Max Zimmerman
May 26, 2022
Bloomberg Businessweek
