As living spaces are becoming more scarce and expensive, design must create innovative strategies that maintain a balance between functionality and aesthetic expression, enhancing the creation of smaller spaces. With this goal in mind, Geberit has launched a competition across six European countries –Germany, France, Great Britain, Switzerland, Czech Republic and Denmark– to reimagine the bathroom inside a 6 m2 space, a common size in the urban environment that still allows for different layouts.
While offering a realistic approach, these proposals work as a guide on how to design bathrooms that optimize space and, at the same time, combine different products, materials and colors accordingly (and creatively).
Green Living
Filled with atmospheric light, the German proposal from Ippolito Fleitz Group incorporates a bathroom’s basic elements –including the toilet and wash basin– while playing with curves, natural materials and vegetation to create a room full of life. Aiming at inquisitive people who like to immerse themselves in spaces, this design integrates haptic textures such as clay walls or mosaic tiles, together with the contrast of rough and reflective surfaces.
With a biophilic design, this ‘green machine’ incorporates ingenious technology behind the wall to take care of water consumption, creating sustainable solutions for the future users’ day-to-day activities.
One for All, All for One
Adaptable to a broad range of users, Eva Ivos’ project from France creates a multifunctional design that responds to the evolution of users throughout time, regardless of their age, mobility and needs. In line with current trends, where it's not uncommon to have four generations under one roof, the proposal is characterized for its flexibility and durability.
Flexibility comes from addressing the needs and cultural habits of varied generations, whereas durability stems from the development of a timeless and natural design that minimizes the bathroom’s environmental impact. Without overlooking aesthetics, the material strategy follows a cream color palette when combining wood with different layouts of porcelain wall tiles to differentiate areas.
Once in a Lifetime
Selecting simple, resilient and durable materials, Nimtim Architects’ project considered sustainability qualities in short term and also in its ability to last for years, designing a project in which practical requirements do not compromise visual or atmospheric characteristics.
Transforming waste plastic into recycled boards to arrange the room’s envelope creates a robust and resistant material that enables a flexible storage system. Whilst remaining resilient, hard-wearing and enduring, the naturally riven UK stone found in the bathroom’s flooring is slip and water resistant. This material selection aims to suit the needs of different age groups within multi-generational living, which is a growing trend in the UK –especially where property costs are not allowing young adults to get their own place.
With an adaptable layout, the ‘Loo of a lifetime’ creates a space that’s suitable for users at different stages of life; being safe and resilient, yet also stimulating for toddlers, calming for teenagers and adults, and accessible later in life.
Size Doesn’t Matter, Style Does
With the washbasin as a starting point, Andrin Schweizer’s design is characterized for being minimalist and functional, yet also for emanating warmth and elegance from its walnut finish elements, which give room for storage and divide the space into different areas. Demonstrating that bathroom design is possible in just 6 m2, the Swiss proposal harmoniously combines materials –opulent and expressive natural stone with calming walnut tones– with an intimate floor plan that is especially appealing for design-savvy people.
Up to the Moon
Dividing the space into functional zones, Slim Studio focuses the design into three main parts; the central backlit round mirror which symbolizes the moon, a bathtub built into the floor with an outside view, and a toilet with hidden parts. This combination of elements, natural and artificial light, and materials –in grey tones and different marble designs– enhances the interplay between an industrial character and a connection with nature.
For the architect Iveta Lajdová, “the bathroom is where we start and end the day”. Hence, her proposal aims for a hygge atmosphere where the layout’s clean lines complement the soft and rounded shapes of the selected furniture.
Serenity
With a focus on developing a clear and strong layout while conveying a sense of calmness to the user, Bjerg Arkitektur achieved the winning design for the 6 m2 bathroom. Alluding to the Danish word ‘ro’, which means serenity, the project’s vision addresses what lies beyond the room, introducing a green space that evokes a strong feeling of warmth. The combination of natural materials, such as light-colored wood and textured stone with a frameless window, enables the bathroom to open up to nature, merging the interior and exterior.
Beyond the bathroom itself, the Danish design makes an innovative use of the space, integrating sustainable elements that can be used for years ahead. For Martin Baumüller, head of Geberit’s marketing and brand’s area, the selection of products –which features calm, earthy colors with wooden accents– provides comfort and sustainability while maximizing space.
For more information about products that help to maximize space in bathroom design, visit our product catalog.
