Having spent years incorporating biophilic principles into environments stretching from the large public space to the intimate home, I find the challenge of missed opportunities in bathroom design, particularly with the toilet, to be a fascinating subject. I’ve seen too many neglect these vital spaces in their designs for fear of being laughed at, but the bathroom is one of the most overlooked yet essential spaces in our homes. And I will argue that without biophilic principles guiding the bathroom design, it isn’t really a good bathroom design at all.
Designing biophilic bathrooms, and more particularly biophilic toilets, is about more than just creating a visually appealing environment. At their core, biophilic bathrooms and toilets extend the concept of biophilia—humankind’s innate affinity for nature—into what are arguably two of the most intimate spaces in our built environment. These designs stimulate opportunities to connect even momentarily with elements of nature in the context of bathroom functions. Beyond their linking of aesthetics and nature, my experience in biophilic bathroom and toilet design has made me acutely aware of the importance of function, and the associated calm that should envelop any bathroom experience, in these spaces.
One project I particularly enjoyed was designing a retreat for a client who wanted to create an environment totally oriented toward wellness in their home. They wanted every aspect of the retreat to help them live in a coherent and constant way that fostered connection to nature—and this included the bathroom. For this, we decided to biophilically design the toilet area, meaning that we strove to incorporate natural elements in function and form. We started with the flooring and, with it, the first of three major design components that converged to create the illusion of being outdoors in nature while attending to the most private and necessary of needs.
The toilet was contained in a bamboo structure. Bamboo is one of my favorite materials for biophilic design. It is sustainable and renewable, and it has an organic warmth that we associate with ease. The bathroom was designed to feel almost like a hut: a hut in the rain forest, with a decor that included bamboo and (almost) nature. The strong, grounding sense of the presence of bamboo was almost matched by the soft sounds of some kind of indoor plants nearby—plants probably not quite as natural to the indoor climate as ferns and peace lilies, which definitely were nearby. These undoubtedly added to my haze of jungle imagination while I sat and relieved myself.
The biophilic toilet experience is also heavily influenced by light. Instead of the kind of bright, direct, and often oppressive overhead light that most bathrooms feature, I put a skylight over the toilet. And there’s something to be said for the way that natural light shines down during the day, not just in sunny conditions, but even when the weather is overcast, as it was on many of my bathroom site visits. I think “serene” is the right word for the stanza of light that the toilet space took on, as well as for the light sculpture that the toilet itself became by day. On certain bright mornings, the whole thing turned almost radiant, and how the client managed, on those days and others, to reap the relaxing benefits of sitting on a toilet enveloped in a serene light sculpture is another empowering life lesson.
An equally important project involved redesigning a wellness spa with biophilic principles. When spa facilities are designed, the loo is often an afterthought. Not so here. The owners insisted that every single detail in the facility was aligned with a natural, healing experience. I am in total agreement. For this space, we decided to integrate the concept of water into the restroom area more holistically. Water, after all, is central to both relaxation and purification. Its sound alone can have a calming effect. To that end, we constructed a cascading water feature next to each toilet cubicle. This was not just an aesthetic flourish. It was also a functional sound mask—helping to maintain privacy for the loo occupants while offering the kind of soothing ambiance that makes you think biophilia can work miracles.
The designers of the toilets had environmental sustainability in mind. The toilets have a dual-flush system that uses minimal water while effectively getting the job done. The use of such a system is an effort toward ensuring overall sustainability in a space where you might not expect sustainable practices to be observed. In addition to the toilet, all the materials used to construct the space are environmentally friendly. For example, if you were to walk into the room and see reclaimed timber making up the accents, you would be seeing wood that was taken from a sustainably managed forest.
What distinguished the spa’s biophilic toilets from others, however, was the use of scent as part of the experience. Each toilet space had a small vent built into the wall that allowed for the slow diffusion of essential oils. We used natural, healthy scents like eucalyptus and mint, which not only helped to purify the air but also added an element of sensory engagement that was completely in line with the spa’s overall theme of health and relaxation. The scents you encountered when entering the bathroom were so calming and so invigorating that they practically compelled you to take a deeper breath—something that was almost a reflex when you walked into any of the toilet spaces.
A biophilic toilet serves to remind us about the essential aspects of using a bathroom that are often taken for granted: privacy and comfort. Countless times, I have had the laughable misfortune of being told—in person or through uncomfortable giggle fits—that being in a public restroom is one of the worst possible types of immersive experiences one could endure. Cold, hard, and unfriendly surfaces; almost non-existent privacy; and harsh, fluorescent lighting are the typical hallmarks of what one might sarcastically dub a “nature” bathroom. My goal has always been to usher forth the warmth and serenity of using the bathroom in “nature,” eliminating as many of the unrecognized hazards as possible.
My most satisfying work project to date has been the redesign of the visitor center bathrooms for a national nature reserve. The reserve wanted to create an auditory experience as close to nature as possible while one was otherwise functional, serving the intimate needs of human visitors. We worked with natural materials. The stalls were made of timber, with each door showcasing different kinds of native wood from the reserve, complete with plaques explaining their ecological significance. It was so good that private funders matched public sector investments for the project, allowing us to work in a truly biophilic manner.
We also employed some non-traditional, organic shapes throughout the room. Instead of the usual stalls and sinks with straight edges, we used gently curving partition walls that mimic the natural forms found in the nearby woodlands. The sinks were custom-designed with unique natural stone basins shaped in irregular patterns. Each basin feels more like a natural formation next to a forest stream than a traditional bathroom sink. And instead of the typical flat mirror above the sink, we chose a reflective surface framed with something that looks more like a natural formation than a man-made mirror. These small touches changed the dynamic of the space completely. Visitors now linger in our bathroom and interact with the elements.
How we handle air quality is also a critical piece of the biophilic toilet design. And this is where biophilic design can really flourish. We can think of bathroom ventilation as not just an uncomfortable detail to get right, but as an opportunity to bring biophilic principles to life, so to speak. In addressing the ventilation for an eco-retreat, we had the unique chance to do something a little different—install not only a natural ventilation system but also living walls. The living walls not only brought the sort of fresh greenery that one usually can’t find in a bathroom into the space; they also acted as air purifiers. The plants we selected for the wall are known to filter out common indoor pollutants, making the bathroom not just look good, but feel good, too, in the sense that you could inhale and exhale comfortably.
My lighting preference tends toward the natural; however, achieving that in a toilet environment requires creativity, especially when designing public or windowless bathrooms. I worked on one such project for a private residence with limited architectural possibilities for natural light. We couldn’t use skylights, so we designed an artificial lighting system that mimicked sunlight. More specifically, we attempted to recreate the look of sunlight filtering through the leaves of a tree—dappled light, in other words. We accomplished this effect through a combination of warm, soft LEDs and some pretty ingenious lighting diffusers that threw the light out in random but controlled directions. The effect was incredible: rather than slapping the room with “macho” overhead lighting (as the more typical solution would have done), our system seemed to envelop the space in a gentle, even wash of light.
Technology has its part to play in biophilia, too. Embracing this style in our built environments requires an increasingly sophisticated set of design choices that integrate modern advancements in a way that complements, rather than competes with, natural elements. While recently working on a luxury resort, for which I served as designer, we made the calculated decision to place high-tech but subtle features as part of our biophilic expression. One of these a blend of heated toilet seats with adjustable settings for water use to match the various physiology of the resort’s occupants. We executed this feature to fit a minimalist aesthetic that did not detract from the appearance of the toilets. While to some this decision might appear ludicrous (it is a picture of opulence, if ever there was one), our integrating these types of high-functioning parts within an otherwise organic space remained a secret that simple resort guests can unlock to mumble something about the fine balance an expensive resort maintains between luxury and comfort.
In the end, the design of a biophilic toilet is not concerned with the notion of bathroom products at all. It is concerned with creating a soothing, primal space for individuals, “a place of nature and a place of nurturing.” Transitional moments in our lives—when we are at our most vulnerable—are the best opportunities to experience biophilic design’s incredible power of relaxing, regenerating, and restoring us. Whether we understand it on a conscious level or not, we interact with natural textures, sounds, and sights in a bathroom setting, and this interaction plays a significant role in our overall sense of well-being. Indeed, one female guest at the resort remarked that after experiencing the biophilic space, she felt “unhurried” in the bathroom for the very first time.
The biophilic toilet, in its many forms, provides a chance to reconsider our design choices regarding the often-dismissed aspects of daily life. When we pay attention to biophilic design, even within the confines of a very practical small room, we generate a moment of calm that offers a chance to reconnect with nature. Every element of a small room can serve, in large part, to impart or remove serenity. By close examination of what’s inside a lavatory, we can figure out how its biophilic betterment might affect us.
