門のためのトイレToilet for gate

Toilet for gate

01Joy in the restroom.

We planned a public toilet next to the Akamon Gate of the University of Tokyo. You can find various joys in the restroom. The joy of gathering new information, the joy of making oneself more beautiful, the joy of being alone, and so on. A man who goes to the restroom to read a newspaper, a girl who enter the restroom to transform into a more beautiful figure, and people who run into the restroom to break free from social constraints. Each one has a drama. The restroom is full of joy, so we must inflate these joys.

02Restroom you can pass through.

We have proposed a toilet that you can walk through in order to inflate your joy. The user enters the toilet through a large arched door, enjoys the pleasures of the restroom, and exits through another door overlooking the greenery. By separating the entrance and exit, no one can see you leave, protecting your privacy. As a result, the psychological burden of going to the toilet is reduced, and the user can enjoy the pleasure of going to the restroom with peace of mind.

03Two restrooms, one door

When privacy is ensured by separating the entrance and exit, the distinction between men's and women's restrooms disappears, and as a result of the lack of an entrance space to separate men and women, the entrance door appears directly on the outside of the restroom. Therefore, one of the design themes is how to design the door on the surface of the restroom. Here, in order to challenge the individualistic assumption of one door per restroom, we decided to design only one large arched door for two restrooms. In other words, although there are two private rooms inside, from the outside it looks like there is only one entrance door.

04An arched door brings out love

One door for two private rooms. Because of the strange appearance of the large door, a relationship like sharing an umbrella begins to emerge between the private rooms. Instead of a cold relationship where two private rooms are placed next to each other, a loving relationship is created where the private rooms are close to each other. In other words, when you are in one private room, you naturally tend to care about the other private room. This is because the two private rooms have the same door. To enhance this love affair, we came up with a design that divides the strongly centripetal arch in half. In fact, the arched doors only open on one side, so the private rooms don't interfere with each other. However, it is important to naturally become aware of the restroom as a whole, not just the room you are using.

05An arched door brings out the love

Be aware of the restroom as a whole. Think of the toilet as a whole, not just the private room you are using.Even though each part is separate, there is a sense of a whole. I thought that this feeling would lead to careful use of the restroom. A restroom that you can walk through has the anonymity of not being seen leaving. That is why a relationship of mutual concern is required. In this day and age, where various things are dismantled and each person lives their own small story, we need to learn to be considerate of the restoroom as a whole. It is important to remember that a private room is not only a toilet as a single room, but also a toilet as a whole.

06Scenery reflected in the mirrored door

Paying attention to the toilet as a whole is important, but it can be dangerous if it becomes too symbolic. Therefore, by attaching a mirror to the large arch-shaped door and showing the people coming and going through the University of Tokyo, we created an exterior that changes every moment. The scenery of people passing through Akamon is reflected on the restroom door, creating a lively atmosphere. You will notice that the blank space left by the mirror door looks like a gate. This restroom is a gate. I would like visitors to discover something through the experience of passing through the gate of the restroom.