Stepping into a lockable bathroom stall, one expects a degree of privacy, but for those with shy bladders, this interior tiling strategy may prove problematic.

Designed by Gyva Grafika in Lithuania, the tyles tap into a well-known aesthetic of conventional mass-housing modules — graying buildings where individual differences emerge in the details of habitation rather than the architecture.

Closed shutters, broken glass, hanging clothes and bemused onlookers populate the walls of the stall, while decorative touches like houseplants and custom curtains add some flair and color to the otherwise brownish background.

The custom tiles wrap the space, starting a few feet up (around waist high) and continuing for five tile lengths to around eye level — together, they form a kind of inverted five-story facade, wrapping but facing inward.

The source is not just imaginary, either — these actual photos were taken in the same neighborhood as the project, so locals might even see themselves staring back at them.

The work conjures to mind projects by artists like Evol, whose miniature streetscapes bare a remarkable resemblance — little villages of mass-produced housing units set into unexpected contexts.

Public baths may have a checkered history and a not-so-squeaky-clean image but these dozen abandoned bathhouses prove things aren’t always cut & dried (lead image above by Jim Denham).

What have the Romans ever done for us? Anyone? Bueller? Well, apart from better sanitation and medicine and education and irrigation and public health and roads and a freshwater system and, of course, the aqueduct, those toga-wearing empire builders introduced the public bathhouse to western civilization.

That noble heritage is referenced in the name of the abandoned Imperial Baths in Sharon Springs, NY., and while the historic spa village itself is enjoying somewhat of a revival, it comes too late for this and other grandiose bathhouses. Kudos to Flickr users Paul (fotofish64) and Mark Barnette, who scouted out the former upstate New York getaway in March of 2009 and June of 2013 respectively.

Zans Clothing Optional

The ancient Romans may have raised the bar when it came to public baths but by no means did they have a monopoly on group bathing. Take the exotic and stylish abandoned bathhouse above, gently deteriorating for who knows how many years in the wilds of Zanzibar, an island in the Indian Ocean off the east coast of Tanzania. Flickr user Arlo Midgett (acmidgett) snapped the “Abandoned Persian bathhouse” in early January, 2013.

Michigan Ragged

So swimming in Lake Michigan was a thing, and not just for unlucky stiffs whacked by the mob. This abandoned bathhouse in Illinois Beach State Park shows off some impressive mid-century modern style that still looks great after years of abandonment.

Flickr user Eli Naeher (enn-here) visited the empty edifice in late October of 2013 to take these slightly eerie (oops, wrong lake!) images. Nice to know the state parks & rec folks are into graffiti remediation and care enough to advise park-goers of the chance of random asbestos.

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Scrubbed 12 Washed Up Washed Out Abandoned Bathhouses

Tentatively titled “Toilets at Dawn,” this photo series documents the strange phenomena of underground public bathrooms of urban London, now deserted but many dating back to Victorian times.

Photographer Agnese Sanvito has taken to capturing these abandoned urban relics in the best light possible, often by shooting them in early-morning hours.

Living, at the time, in a cesspool of industry and publicly-discarded human waste, Victorian Londoners gladly paid a penny or two to get out of the streets and into subterranean restrooms. Though most of these were neglected in the years following World War II, their surface remnants still stand in many places.

“They’re part of the fabric of the city, but because they’re not in use no-one pays attention to them, they are forgotten spaces,” says Agnese. “At the moment, I have just photographed those in the area that are near to me. It’s a work-in-progress, I don’t know where it’s going. Now my friends call sometimes and say, ‘I’ve found another one.’”

Once prominent and highly functional, most of these remainders go largely unnoticed in the bustle of the city, until you start spotting them, then searching out more.

Some are obscured trees, weeds or rubbish, but underneath you can still find gorgeous detailing and meticulous ironwork. Others have even been converted into everything from restaurants to private homes.

Today, more conventional, above-ground, and generally less-exciting restrooms (some for free, others for a fee) have largely replaced these vintage curiosities.

Maybe it’s a little weird to stare at oversized images of whipped cream and cherries plastered onto the wall while you’re relieving yourself, but hey, at least it’s not the other way around. The Toilennale festival in Oita, Japan attempted to elevate public restroom facilities into cultural experiences by transforming them into art installations or holding events like poetry readings inside.

This particular installation, entitled ‘Melting Dream,’ looks like a gigantic cake – or perhaps an ice cream sundae – from outside (perhaps inspired by actual urinal cakes). Step inside and you’ll be confronted with murals of various sweet treats alongside cherry-red floors. Set adjacent to urinals mounted a wall, suddenly a sugary glaze dripping down fruit takes on a more ambiguous meaning.

If you’re feeling a little disconcerted by this combination of human biological urges, that’s the point. Artist Minako Nishiyama notes that the people of Japan are going about their daily lives as if nothing changed after the Fukushima nuclear disaster. “The concept of the piece is that Japan, the sweet country of ambiguity, is beginning to crumble.”

15 other public restroom transformations included ‘gonzo performance,’ private poetry readings inside stalls, a celebration of toilet graffiti and “an odd recital given by the ‘Zombie,’ an automatic performance machine that plays the recorder.” The facilities remained open for their usual purpose throughout the festival, which opened in July and ran through September 23rd. The next Toilennale is scheduled for 2017.

The ultimate fixer-upper, real estate rarely looks so unpromising as this London dump did – thankfully, one architect saw potential beyond these potties, despite the place truly looking like shi… well, er, bad. In the end, the before-and-after shots speak for themselves – few buildings can boast such total turnarounds, converting crappy ruins into shining tur…, er, digs.

Located under the Crystal Palace Parade, these lavatories constitute just 600 square feet of space – not much by the standards of some cities but relative huge for England’s densely-packed capital.

Located by architect Laura Clark after just finishing up at the Glasgow School of Art, the strange site seemed a perfect challenge for an aspiring architectural designer wanting to take up residence in London.

At the intersection of various municipalities and built nearly a century ago, getting approvals turned out to be painfully difficult – even establishing who owned the property proved problematic. Eventually, though, it went up for sale and she was able to secure and start working to convert it.

The results of her efforts: a compelling home constructed for under 65,000 Pounds (around $100,000 USD), surprisingly open, spacious and light-filled compared to its cavernous original state. Along the way, the architect was able to reuse some old materials in the new construction and save some existing walls as well.