BATHROOM IN OSU NEIGHBORHOOD, ACCRA, GHANA

Pain au chocolat, Picard and public urination: Paris has a pee problem. Urinals for men, urinals for women, free-standing, built in rows along the wall, self-cleaning ones (which are usually the dirtiest), plastique, metal, there is one for everyone. Paris is seemingly the testing ground for public restroom technologies. If I were a urinal, being stationed in Paris would be the equivalent of being amongst the first to storm the beaches of Normandy. So when Facility Magazine, a magazine about bathrooms (“Conversationally, architecturally, politically, artistically, we spend too little time celebrating or critiquing this space that we visit—and the things that we do there—every day.” per their website), had an open call for submissions, I was prepared.

I wanted to make a global index, comparing the public restroom experience in New York, Paris and a third country. I wanted to explore what our public peeing habits communicate about us, and about the communities we live in. Is it a legacy of the revolution to pee where you please as they do in Paris? Is it the effects of runaway capitalism that means in New York City most of us use Starbucks as a “public” restroom? What about in other corners of the world...?

I met Shalom (aka Shasha) via Instagram on another project. He is a very talented photographer based in Accra, with a distinct eye, incorporating elements of street photography and magical realism. He is a world-builder who suspends time, giving you the impression of walking through the freeze frame of a Nolan film (I invite you to explore his photos via @shashaeffects on Instagram). I told him about the project, and he went to snap some photos. What he sent back changed the entire project.

Shasha and I worked collaboratively on this project. I was responsible for photo editing, text and layout.