Unlike classical architecture, characterized by a series of rooms with very defined functions and spaces, the current architectural design seeks to integrate spaces to achieve high degrees of adaptability and flexibility. In this way, the boundaries of the enclosures are blurred and new solutions appear that are worth analyzing. In the case of bedrooms, bathrooms are often no longer a small and secluded adjoining room – instead, they are now integrated to form a multifunctional space that is subtly concealed. Just like Mies van der Rohe, who used to group services in strategic areas to create open floors, let's review some cases that have adopted the specific solution of the hidden bathroom just behind the bed.
In the case of the Casa Hualle by Ampuero Yutronic, the same wall that faces the bed allows the bathroom to be hidden with double access, serving as support for the sinks and the mirror, located at the back. Clad in light wood, like the rest of the room, the bathroom remains concealed but highly integrated, including a bathtub with views of the landscape, a shower, and a private toilet. The separating wall doesn't reach the ceiling and the floor is made of the same material, integrating even more all the designed spaces.
The Wilderness House by Archterra Architects features a continuous circulation around its perimeter, hiding the bathroom behind the low wall that faces the landscape with its back to the main bed. Unlike the previous case, this white wall is separated into two parts: a storage area and a curved space that includes a shower and a bathtub. Behind, the sinks and other supporting furniture are located, while the WC has been separated into a small adjoining cabin, to prevent odors from infiltrating into the bedroom.
The project for the AW Residence by andramatin includes two mirrored bedrooms with hidden bathrooms behind their beds. In this case, the wall allows the installation of sinks and storage, and the toilet and shower have been separated in an opaque glass cabin. Here, the wall is much thinner than those used in the previous cases, but it reaches the full height of the space.
Hufft Projects' Heavy Metal house takes advantage of the space behind the bed to create a large bathroom space, including a sink, a walk-in closet, and a shower that opens into an interior patio. The wall that separates them reaches the full height of the space and is cladded with wood towards the bedroom. The WC is also located separately, in a closed cabin.
MAPA's MINIMOD Catuçaba project, as a prefabricated and minimal-scale house, uses this solution to make the most of the square meters of the house. The bed has its back to a volume that contains storage, a sink, and a toilet, and that separates the bedroom from the kitchen and the living room. To avoid unwanted odors, two sliding doors have been arranged that allow the bathroom to be opened and closed, providing greater privacy to its users.
Taking advantage of the freedoms that hotel design provides, at the VISAYA Hotel by ATDESIGN this strategy has been pushed to the limit. The white wall facing away from the bed conceals the sink, storage, a WC, and a glazed shower, while a sculptural bathtub is fully freed and arranged in a corner of the room, providing spectacular views of the surrounding landscape.
In Substance Architecture's 322 Reinvented home, the entire wall is transformed into a multifunctional space, including storage, a glass shower in the center, and a mirrored sink on the backside. The bathtub and toilet are located in two separate cabins, one on each side of this central wall.
For the mixed-use project Nanyang 5Lmeet by DAGA Architects, three micro-apartments have been designed using the same strategy as the previous cases. Here, the warm wooden wall allows luminaires to be incorporated towards the bed while hiding a WC and a shower in the center, and a sink and furniture on its sides, both of which are visible.
Check out more open restrooms here.
