Public toilet exhibition: Just a fanciful notion?

In early 20^th century Toronto, as in other large industrial cities of the time, public toilets were provided in order to curb excretion on city streets and hence contain the spread of disease.  However, city officials also regarded public toilets as central to the strategy of urban modernization and the creation of “beautiful hygienic cities” (Greed, n.d., p.4).  Indeed, the public toilet debuted at the Great Exhibition at Hyde Park, London in 1851, where the latest cultural and industrial innovations from around the globe were put on show for a discerning audience.

Today, public toilets no longer are valued as one of the successes of urbanism.  Instead, they are, at best, regarded as costly and generally redundant conveniences, taking up space that could be used for a more noble purpose than accommodating the needs of the body.  At worst, public toilets are regarded as dirty and often disgusting spaces, and produce compound practical difficulties and social dilemmas for planners, designers, and city officials.

More critically, public toilets that are badly designed, inadequately maintained, and poorly located habitually result in, for example, older people, people with disabilities, women—with or without babies and young children, transgender people, and homeless people being unable to access public toilets. 

How do we reinvigorate the image of public toilets?  How do we, once again, appreciate the social and practical importance of public toilets and help reduce the stigma and embarrassment surrounding public toilets?  I think it would be awesome if there could be a travelling outdoor art exhibit spotlighting the public toilet.  Creators of all sorts could showcase their model public toilets and people could vote on best accessible public toilet design.  People could offer suggestions for design elements they would like to see in public toilets.  Ideas could be generated about how to keep public toilets clean and safe.  There could be a display on public toilets through history and a display on the world’s best public toilets today.  One-of-a-kind ‘public toilet’ artwork could be for sale.  The exhibit could feature a mix of the functional and the whimsical. 

Perhaps this exhibit would be more idealistic than realistic, but it would reach a very large audience and, critically, help get a much needed conversation started.

A travelling public art exhibit on the public toilet.  It’s just an idea I’m throwing out there, but I think it’s not such a bad one.  What do you think?

Greed, C. (n.d.). Taking stock: An overview of toilet provision and standards. Retrieved from http://kb.keepbritaintidy.org/toilets/publications/stock.pdf.