DESIGNING FOR SMALL BATHROOMS
Year: 2016
Editor: Erik Bohemia, Ahmed Kovacevic, Lyndon Buck, Christian Tollestrup, Kaare Eriksen, Nis Ovesen
Author: Sivertsen, Arnt Kĺre; Berg, Arild
Series: E&PDE
Institution: Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences, Norway
Section: Responding to Social Issues
Page(s): 021-026
ISBN: 978-1-904670-62-9
Abstract
This paper will focus on how to design a series of bathroom products that work well for small
bathrooms using the principles of universal design. In home culture research, Quitzau and Rřpke has
studied bathroom transformation from hygiene to well-being. Bathrooms are one of the rooms in
apartments that do not have good solutions for small spaces. This is unfortunate since it is the
bathroom that has the least amount of space in urban apartments. This leads many people to have too
little bathroom space due to furniture, toilets, showers, etc. In today's society, the bathroom is no
longer just a purpose room. It is used for relaxation and wellness. This has led to a trend where large
furniture, such as freestanding bathtubs, dominate today's market. This in turn allows the few solutions
that exist for small bathrooms to remain poorly conceived. The research question was therefore how to
create solutions for small bathrooms to get the same sense of well-being as in larger bathrooms
through universal design principals. The principles of universal design, observations and in-depth
interviews were used in the study. This study can help to create a greater understanding of how to
design small bathrooms. It will be relevant in a cross disciplinary field, including for professionals in
plumbing, product design and technical solutions. This will also increase the well-being of users of the
bathroom.
Keywords: Urban design, interview, observation, bathroom design.