Gatewood studio arts building: Bathroom

The Gatewood Studio Arts Building is one which faces a number of unique but definite lighting challenges. We worked, as a group, to determine the specific lighting challenges in this building, specifically those faced by the third floor Women’s restroom. While the over all aesthetic of the space is quite pleasing, the interactions between light and user, space, and color palette change the nature and intent of the space altogether.


The room itself is narrow yet intimate, used mostly for personal hygiene and (in our case) a place to sketch, draw, etc The awkward mix of material choices leave one questioning the possibility of better, more user-friendly options. Lighting in the space is harsh, bright, and unforgiving; its fluorescent glow makes the user feel uncomfortable and unwelcome in space . The tiles on the floor and serving as baseboards are a mixture of matte and glazed, creating an unusual texture map and glare through uneven distribution of material reflectivity. There is no natural light to work with and very little color in the space, so we found that designers should not only consider adding color to a space such as this, but also incorporating natural light. This would break up the monotony in the space an allowing for a more fulfilling spacial experience.