art in the bathroom

After living for a number of years with the wallpaper our home's previous owner installed on the bathroom ceiling, I'm keenly aware of the disastrous things that bathroom humidity can do to paper. So I'm reluctant to put nice prints, drawings, photos, etc., into that kind of environment.

But, on the other hand, I've developed a pretty strong belief that life without art is depressing. (Although I'm defining art here in the broadest terms.) And when I saw artist Vicki Bruner's bathroom on the downtown Richmond loft tour this Spring, I really flipped for the innovative ways she had incorporated art into the space.

The "art" in our new bathroom currently consists only of some pottery and a couple wooden birds from West Elm. But I have in mind a couple other things I'd like to add. One idea is creating my own framed versions of Chinese characters, done with a brush and ink. I can always recreate them quickly when the humidity starts getting to them.

Our other plan is to get 16 Hands artist Brad Warstler to make us a large carved wooden disk to go on the wall over our tub. When we were visiting his studio this Spring (where his wife, potter Ellen Shankin, also lives and works), he showed us a beautiful piece he had turned and carved for their own living room. (See below. It's a horrible picture taken in a rush with my cell phone, but it gives you the idea.) We'd want something in a much lighter wood for our bathroom, but we love the look of the carving.

Here are a few more photos courtesy of Houzz (as is the first photo above) illustrating some more ideas for "durable" art in the bathroom. (Or, in the last photo, the art isn't so durable. But putting it on a shelf allows you to more easily change it out periodically.)

contemporary bathroom design by san francisco interior designer Ashfield Hansen Design

modern bathroom design by chicago interior designer Morava Glass Studio

contemporary bathroom design by new york architect Chelsea Atelier Architect, PC

asian bathroom design by other metros interior designer C H Paquette

modern bathroom design by san francisco architect Mark Brand Architecture