Tokyo: Pritzker prize-winning architect Shigeru Ban and more than a dozen other leading designers created ‘transparent toilets’ which were recently installed in public parks in Tokyo.
The loo is made from coloured “smart glass” that turns opaque when the cubicles are occupied.
The conveniences opened this month in five locations in the capital’s Shibuya neighbourhood as part of the Tokyo Toilet Project, organised by the nonprofit Nippon Foundation.
The foundation said it wanted to dispel stereotypes of dirty public toilets in the state. “There were important practical considerations behind the unusual toilets. The first is whether it is clean inside, and the second is that no one is secretly waiting inside.”
Using new technology, the foundation said the cubicles’ glass outer walls turn opaque after the door is locked, allowing users to survey the interior before spending a penny.
“At night they light up the parks like a beautiful lantern,” it added.
Japan’s hi-tech WCs have long been the subject of fascination among visitors to the country. The project plans to install the toilets at 17 locations in Shibuya by next spring.
Toto, the maker of the washlet range, now markets its toilets with washing and drying modes, seat warming and lids that open and close automatically.