My first time in Europe I researched toilets…
…the research was incidental, since every time I used the toilet in a different country, I started to notice the similarities and differences of the design elements I was finding at each toilet through the course of my European road trip.
While in the Swiss Alps my hands were tickled by the power of a Swiss hi-tech-hand-dryer. Then on our way to Venice, we stopped at a gas station for a quick pit-stop, here I was lead to the toilets by an unusual but beautiful circular wall that led to the toilets. Lastly, I concluded my toilet research in the Amsterdam airport, where I felt as if I was at the Sephora store, because there were large vanity mirrors with make-up lighting and a countertop with comfortable seats, that I even took the chance to retouch my makeup.
Architecture and Europe have taught me that a place is not “just a place”, but instead an experience as a whole. As humans, we have a multitude of psychological and physiological receptors that provide us with the ability to detect the world around us. Not only are we wired to understand space, form, and nature, but also are we wired to perceive with our eyes, hands, ears, tongue, and nose.
Interior designers have the responsibility to create unique experiences for each “space” by having a holistic understanding of the purpose of the space, the brand and culture that needs to be communicated through the space, and the level of engagement between user+space that is desired. After this has been determined and understood, then the Interior Designer can execute provoking-senses-design decisions — such as color, shape, movement, texture, rhythm, proportion, etc. — that will require engaging one or all of the five human senses.
Example 1. The design of the Venetian toilets provokes the user's senses by using shape, volume, texture, and icons to ensure a uniquely memorable experience for each toilet-user.
Example 2. Buc-ee's toilets in New Braunfels, Texas are memorable to the toilet-user because they are not the typical gas station toilet in the US… Although European toilets are by far more provoking than this design.
American toilets are similar — very — different to those in Switzerland, Venice, and Amsterdam, because even when the purpose of the space is the same, the design approach speaks uniquely to each place and location.
Originally Published: 11/09/2017
