What art do you have in your bathroom? I always think bathroom art is so important because — while brushing teeth, blow-drying hair, toweling off — you spend so much time looking at it. So, I smiled when I saw my friend Grace‘s New York City bathroom on Instagram. Don’t you love the print?
(Side note: Grace also makes beautiful ceramics.)
P.S. Where to buy affordable art, and my twin sister’s home makeover.
I have this amazing marine life wall sculpture in the master bathroom at our beach house by Bovano:
https://www.esculpture.com/products/angelfish-and-rock-beauty-metal-wall-art-sculpture
I have a print by Vermont folk artist Dug Nap that reads,
DOWN WITH TOILET SEATS
I love it.
https://dugnap.com/collections/all-prints/products/p471-down-with-toilet-seats (similar, though not identical to this one)
I have a vintage signal flag of a blue circle on white background. It’s NUMBER TWO. hahahahaha. Cracks me up.
Haha love that! I have an old track and field trophy that looked like the person was squatting, so my dad had engraved on the front “I pooped today!”
Back at our family home, my younger sisters have put up print-outs of things they want to memorise in the bathroom, like a list of countries’ capitals, and the photos and names of members of the government. It’s always funny to see those there.
We have a duck with a cape and a mask that says “you’re a fucking star” and it makes me smile every time I see it. We bought it the night before we got engaged as the bar We got an after drink beer at was selling art. I see it behind me every morning in the mirror and is like my own personal superhero motivating me for the day.
When I studied abroad in France, I had to have a health check-up for my student visa. My chest was x-rayed, and they gave it to me. I found a clear frame for it and it looks pretty great against the white wall of my bathroom.
Suzanne Caygill launched the whole “having your colors done” thing, way back when. Sometime back then, my dear grandfather and grandmother had their colors done by the Famous Suzanne. Quite the big deal! She made up these cool sheets for each of them, with small pieces of fabric attached, and little photos of their eye colors, with suggestions for the colors that best suited them. (My grandfather is a “vivid winter,” and my grandmother was “summer (old rose)”.) I don’t know the dates, except that they both have a copyright of 1945. Last year, when I bought my first home, I begged my aunt to give them to me, instead of to Cornell University, which was collecting them. She relented, and they are framed in my bathroom. They are the most special pieces of art I own.
I have a cross stitch with pretty flowers which says “Please don’t do coke in my bathroom.”
In one bathroom we have photographs relating to the moon–a portrait of the first mom in space, President Kennedy pointing to the moon, and the moon itself.
In another bathroom we have the movie poster for Breakfast at Tiffany’s (Italian version).
We have a watercolor of the back of a seated nude woman. But, if you’re sitting on the toilet and happen to look towards the sink, you’ll spy a tiny banner looped to our pipes that reads, “Get Shit Done.” Bought it after a few brunch cocktails years ago and it’s made us giggle ever since.
I love this humour. A while ago there seemed to be a trend for those vintage look posters that say ‘keep calm and carry on’. I have one of these posters on the back of the door to the toilet….
In lieu of a mirror above my powder room’s sink, I have a framed letterpress print that says “hey, you. You look especially handsome/beautiful today. Keep it up, champ.” It always makes me smile — even if I can see my smile in a mirror.
Thanks for the topic as I have been looking for suggestions on our recently updated powder room and upstairs bathrooms! For the kid’s shared bathroom (2 boys/1 girl), we actually have a B&W photo of my 2 boys (now 21 and 17 years old!) in the bathtub at ages 5 and 1.5 years old where the oldest is using a squirt toy on the younger one and both have the biggest/best smiles on their faces. I also have a 20 x 24 B&W canvas of my oldest on his first shaving day at age 13 with the other two just hanging out on the counter with shaving cream on their faces as well! It really makes me wish I took more bathroom photos when they were younger – these are great reminders/memories and better than any artwork! In our powder room I have a Please Seat Yourself wood sign from Etsy over the toilet ;) Stay well all!
I have a lovely hand drawn art of a hippopotamus sitting on the toilet, imitating the classic pose of Greek statue The Thinker. Makes me laugh every time!
I have a tribute painting a friend did similar to Georgia O’Keefe’s very vaginal flowers. She gave it to me many years ago and said she thought about me while painting it because my job “had to do with vaginas and activism”. I am an Ob/Gyn now and always look at it in the mirror and wonder if I could have achieved all my feminist life goals without folks like her celebrating and honoring my passions.
Several years ago, I bought a cross stitch on Etsy that says “Wash your hands” and then you could pick four organisms out of a whole list to be added, such as salmonella etc. I have it in my powder room. I wonder if they will have added a Covid19 option now?
A series of 4 x 6 framed pages from a Chinese book on acupressure. They have Chinese text and illustrations of body parts, such as ears, tongue, spine. Above that grouping is a gold mystical eye sculpture I made. Looks apropos nestled next to my extending magnifying mirror
A watercolor of the beach at Cannon Beach Oregon. A reminder of our month long summer roadtrip with our two boys after I finished grad school. Such a great trip!
The lyrics to “Rapper’s Delight”.
It gives you something to read and could ever be in a bad mood with that funky song playing in your head. Helps to start the day out right!
I love this! I have two posters hanging in my entryway. One says: “Can I kick it?” The other one says (obvs): “Yes you can.” They make me smile when I walk in!
I’ve been making bathroom art over the break! Follow my Instagram account for some bathroom scenes with famous artwork in them…no toilet paper hoarders here! The account is @kathryncoop
I love the car prints in my bathroom! I bought number twelve from this 2016 post (linked below), and then I found a similar photo featuring a green bug by Ben Wagner on Instagram, so I emailed him to ask if I could buy a print.
https://cupofjo.com/2016/03/best-affordable-art/
A wave picture we found in my in laws attic…. If you look at it you gotta go!
I have a series of tiny 2”x2” landscape paintings I’ve made after various trips resting on the ledge of our wainscoting (maybe around 20 or so?). I love reminiscing each adventure while sitting on the thinker.
I love that you call it “the thinker” and I’m going to start doing the same!
My sister and best friend both live in Portland, Oregon so it’s a frequent vacation destination for me. One of my favorite things to do there is go to Powell’s and every time I visit, I find a cool postcard or two to bring home and frame to commemorate the trip. I’ve got a series of 6 of them hanging in my bathroom.
Love this! We have a big old poster that I picked up for free at a wine event ten years ago: https://www.greatbigcanvas.com/view/cycles-gladiator-by-georges-massias-vintage-poster,ah0263-fina/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI26HHwfXH6AIVBY_ICh35_wJuEAQYAyABEgKxEvD_BwE
Love having nudes in the bathroom :)
We have a little sign that says “hello sweet cheeks” that I think is hilarious! I love this post, made me smile today :)
I have an embroidered sign “Please do not do coke in the bathroom” above my toilet–as a complete JOKE. I do not do/endorse drugs!
My mom–on her first visit to my apartment–commented very seriously after a trip to the bathroom, “I sure hope you don’t do coke, Sarah.” Hahahahaha!
My husband and I both have a connection to Harold Ramis and we have a Caddyshack movie poster that he signed for my husband when he was a kid hanging in our bathroom. I was working on his hospital floor when he passed and his wife was so grateful to all of the hospital staff. It’s a wonderful way to remember his legacy.
A series of Ernst Haeckel bird, tropical and sea life prints.
I acquired an original cardboard poster for the last U.S. Beatles concert at Candlestick Park in San Francisco in 1966. It is “psychedelic” with rainbow colors, a picture of the Fab Four, and listed 3-tier ticket prices: $5, $5.50, $6. It makes me smile when I brush my teeth.
I have this adorable little swimmer in my bathroom.
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/47850814764108468/
My bathroom has an old b&W photo of my dad & his twin sister in the bathtub as kids. It’s a copy of a vintage, weathered photo where they’re old enough that the two of them really don’t fit in there together, and it’s kind of a creepy photo, which I find hilarious.
This butt print: https://society6.com/product/butts-e5e_print?sku=s6-3335536p4a1v45
It makes me smile all the time and reminds me that art can be fun rather than just serious. At our housewarming there was a line for the bathroom just to look at it.
I got the towel version of this because I thought it would be funny to have a “beach bum” towel. I didn’t realize it’s not just cheeks….!
I saw this amazing print at our neighbor’s powder room at a Christmas party last year: a bunch of (illustrated!) butts :)
https://society6.com/product/butts-e5e_print
I have a pink and gold “You Go Girl!” print on the wall across from the toilet. Definitely meant for a child’s bedroom but this 20something and her houseguests always get a laugh from it while “going” :-)
I’m a printmaker and a few years ago made some letterpress prints of a favorite song lyric of mine — “Just Relax, You’re Doing Fine.” That’s next to my medicine cabinet as a daily reminder — especially important for times like these!
In a thrift store I found a small salvaged piece of stained glass, maybe 12”x18”, still in its original wooden frame. I hung that over the (only slightly larger) bathroom window. That’s it for decor, but I think it’s so gorgeous that it stands alone very well.
Sounds just beautiful.
A few years ago, I was making a big career move, from a legendary institution where I really launched my career to a new job in a much smaller town halfway across the country where we didn’t know a soul. Around that time, Magnum (a collection of some of the best photographers alive today) was having a print sale called The Decisive Moments and I bought a gorgeous image by Jonas Bendiksen of bathers jumping off a huge, dilapidated ship into the Black Sea. The whole collection is really gorgeous, but I’m especially grateful to have Jonas’s print in my bathroom, reminding me daily to take the leap.
http://www.streetshootr.com/magnum-square-print-sale-decisive-moments/
Love this! You chose such a beautiful picture!
I have an Elliot Erwitt photo in my corridor from a Magnum Square Print sale (https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn%3AANd9GcTAq9tyKG0GBG_7Drb6Er5i2_R4rJU-fPcs_aQR3gsu71hKVcfM&usqp=CAU). In the back it has his quote “The ability to understand and share feelings of another is the reason everyone should have a dog.” Every time I walk by it makes me smile. :)
@Nadine – Oh, I love your choice, too. I had the great privilege to speak with Elliot Erwitt early in my career (just licensing an image from him). He was so, so kind and lovely.
@Jenny Rosenstrach T. Wow!!! It must be such a beautiful memory!
We have a very special painting by Alex Kanevsky in our bathroom. It is gorgeous and sentimental. Then one day I was digging through old photos lying around and I realized the painting was in fact a painting of my husband’s first wife, a fleeting 30 second marriage in his early 20s. Doh! And so she stands in our bath watching all the dirty deeds ;)
I was a nude model for the Art Dept’s Figure Drawing class in undergrad and made friends with a few of the girls in the class. One of them gave me a few of her chalk drawings of me. I have a large one framed and hanging in my bathroom. It is on cheap brown paper in shades of purple and gold and adds just a touch of sensuality. Very few people know it is me. :)
This made me laugh out loud – Little Piggy Sign Co, Walker, MN:
4 1/2 Stars
‘Would Poop Here Again”
We have some framed concert posters and a fourth framed print that used to hang over our daughter’s changing table — “I love the shit out of you” hanging over the toilet. Makes everyone chuckle and now that our daughter is starting to read, she gets a thrill out of reading a “dirty” word. Hahaha
We have a print from an artist in Portland, right behind the toilet that is a giant, full, foaming mug and it just reads “BEER.”
Along with a straw monkey head from Panama, and a framed bat from Vietnam. (My 4-year-old is terrified of it all… Oops…)
We have this print “Everything’s gonna be super duper” right across from our Throne. It’s so delightfully encouraging, even on those not so great days :) https://www.marcjohns.com/shop/signed-prints/everythings-gonna-be-super-duper-signed-print
That is awesome print.
Years ago I bought some wrapping paper from a fancy shop. It’s covered in collective nouns (a glaring of cats, a bloat of hippopotamuses etc) and I meant to get it framed to hang in a downstairs loo or something but I live in a tiny one-bed flat and the bathroom gets really steamy so think it would get damaged in there. One day, I’ll have a bit more house to play with and my makeshift art will have its day in the sun, as it were!
You could perhaps get a piece of it laminated?
Please, stay at home.
When I was growing up, my mom had two matching pieces of art hanging in our bathroom—cartoon-like nude drawings of a man and a woman. I remember being so embarrassed of them, especially when friends would come over. Now that I’m an adult, whenever I randomly think of them, I wish she still had them so I could take them. I’ve tried to search for something similar but no luck.
I’d love some art in my bathroom, but given our extractor fan is less than effective, I’ve always been worried about the steam getting into the frame and ruining the print. How do you stop that happening?!
We have the same problem. I dont put anything expensive in there. I bought some great affordable downloadable art from Etsy but you also go to unsplash.com all the prints are free just cant resell them or take credit for the work. I bought cheap non wooden frames from an art store and sealed the back of the frame up well with packing tape. I live on the coast and there is a ton of moisture in the air without steamy showers. I just took them down to move and they look good after a couple years. I’ll switch out the artwork in the next place.
I think a good framer can help you. I wanted to hang some precious pieces (fabric stuck on paper, from the 40s, so not exactly sturdy) in my bathroom, so told my framer about my concerns. They used a spacer so that the frame is set off from the paper, then sealed it to make sure no moisture could enter. Both have been hanging for about a year, and I can see no damage. The framing was expensive, but 100% worth it!
I send you much love from Poland! I am with you ( your blog) from over 10 years, I feel like a part of your community, your friend. Now, in these hard times, every time I hear ,,New York”, my thoughts are with you, with your family,and your friends. I cross the fingers for your beautiful, amazing city, for New Yorkers . I just want you to know, that at the other end of the world, there is a friend, who prays for you and your loved ones.
This is beautiful.
Check out one Selma Blairs recentish posts on insta wheee she in a bathtub in the Nomad hotel…The artwork behind her in the shot is PHENOM.
The bathroom on our main floor (i.e. the one guests use) is decorated with an Elvis theme– Elvis on the wall, animal print towels and rugs, a ceramic Elvis squirrel, etc. When people ask about it (an few actually do), I always tell them that The Throne Room belongs to Elvis.
This is in our bedroom, but we have an Ed Ruscha print that just says, “Excuse Me, I Didn’t Mean To Interrupt.” Still makes me laugh!
Just before the Covid 19 pandemic blew up, I commissioned art from from a firm called Pangea Maps for my husbands birthday. They made for me a beautiful wooden art piece of the coastline of Co. Waterford, the county where my husband is from in Ireland. It was to be a surprise and also he doesn’t know it but I intended to be placed in the bathroom in our small home in Ireland. It was a once off spendy item. It shipped from Australia to Ireland 2 weeks ago. It was to be a surprise for when we were to visit home from NYC in April…but that has all gone up in smoke along w putting our house on the market in Queens anytime soon. We were to move back for good this year after being here for 30+ years! ?. Also sending out much love to all The Frontliners…you are soo much in my thoughts these days and I am most grateful for all that you do and are about to face particularly in NYC in the coming weeks….I pass by Elmhurst hospital everytime I go to and from my nurse’s aide job in Queens Jackson Heights and I am terrified!!
Your plan to move back to Ireland sounds lovely, and I’m so sorry it won’t be going as scheduled. We’re also struggling with some major life changes that are happening as a result of the pandemic, and we’re losing sleep over it. I keep trying to tell myself that we never know what’s around the corner, and we may look back on this as a new awakening or start of a beautiful life we hadn’t expected. But it’s hard to feel convinced of this right now. Hugs.
I’m from Queens too, close to you. Things are bleak now but have hope and heart, and soon enough when all is well you’ll be back in your beautiful Ireland:)
I’m not generally big on potty humor, but one of my kids made a lovely chalk drawing of the all the planets in kindergarten and it matched the bathroom… It’s even laminated so moisture won’t ruin it! I couldn’t resist!
I have a charcoal drawing of the backside of a nude woman that I drew. I love nude drawings in a bathroom — quite obvious but when is that problem?!
i love nudes in a bathroom! how pretty is this bathroom in designer john derian’s home?
Above the bathroom door (hall side) I have a vintage sign with faded paint that says “No Lifeguards on Duty. Members/Guests swim at their own risk.” Once in the bathroom — the only “art” per se is a model of the Titanic (yes, that Titanic) which sits on the molding above the bathroom door. I inherited the model, and it seemed like the only appropriate place for it to reside. It’s narrow and fits perfectly on the door frame (old house, thicker door and window moldings lend to leaning or sitting stuff upon them.)
I love the both of these ideas. The model of the Titanic on the molding of the door is creative and interesting.
There is a creek in Ohio called Pee Pee Creek. My husband passes it occasionally for work and thinks it’s hilarious. He wanted a framed print of the highway sign. I vetoed it, but surprised him with a framed topographical map of the area for his birthday and if you look closely you can see where Pee Pee Creek is labeled. It hangs in our half bath and I really love the little secret now.
Hi! I am an artist an do custom digital work through upwork or directly through my instagram in case anyone is interested! I am just starting out so my pieces are not very expensive! =) @sisudoesart on instagram for more details =)
ugh it feels icky to self promote like this but Coronavirus times call for desperate measures! I also do tranlslations (Spanish to english and viceversa) in case anyone needs any lol
Hi Sisu, I really love your artwork and have wanted to get some custom prints done for awhile. Is there another way to reach out to you? I don’t have social media whatsoever but will make an IG if need be :)
Never mind, I found your Upwork site! :)
I found a print on etsy which I love. Playing on restaurant signage, it reads “Please Seat Yourself.”
This shop has all kinds of funny bathroom prints: https://www.etsy.com/shop/TheCrownPrints?ref=simple-shop-header-name&listing_id=267280327§ion_id=17862630
Some fish-themed StoryTiles, souvenir of a trip to the Netherlands a few years ago, and waterproof, to boot.
I’ve been needing a piece of art work for my bathroom and came across this through one of your links or in the comments. I live right outside Yosemite and it made me laugh so much. I can’t wait to hang it up! https://www.ambersharedesign.com/shop
We finally hung up bathroom art in our apartment this past weekend! We went with 2 Dali prints, which has turned out to be a really fun choice since there are so many strange objects tucked into his paintings. Always something new to look at!
My husband and I did a hike in the Cinque Terre on our honeymoon. We were fortunate enough to find ourselves behind a rather stocky German grandmother with a long floral dress, sturdy stockings and tennis shoes. She was at the very back of her tour group and passing gas throughout the entire journey so we snapped a photo of her on the hike. We have always hung that picture in our bathroom over many moves as a reminder that this is a safe place to “let er rip!”
I love this!!!
Your story is awesome! Made me chuckle out loud (while everyone else in my house is asleep) and totally just made my day! Great story and great bathroom art idea!
In my downstairs bathroom I have 4 pieces of art all inspired by The Office
Stapler in jello
Michael and Dwight with a Dundee award
Angela and Dwight ala American gothic
AND my fav
Bears
Beets
Battle star Galactica
My upstairs bathroom has animals in clothing by a local artist that I love https://www.etsy.com/shop/jenwurbanart
I have a sign in my bathroom regarding the beach. I got it as a Christmas present years ago. I am a huge beach fan, so this sign represents me well.
I have a section of The Three Ages of Woman by Gustav Klimt hanging in the bathroom. I had a Klimt calendar a few years ago, and I like to repurpose pictures from calendars at the beginning of the next year. I framed the section of the young woman cuddling the little girl, and it’s been hanging in the bathroom for the past three or four years. I still love gazing at it while soaking in the bathtub.
I have the flower headband I wore to our wedding dinner and a photo from our wedding (that his mom took and my mom got printed) in our master bathroom. A little corner of happiness!
I this Craft Boner print that says “shit could be worse” above my toilet. :D
https://www.craftboner.com/collections/for-your-walls/products/shit-could-be-worse-art-print
Rani Ban!!
I am thrilled to see her work featured here!
we have framed prints of the maps to our kid’s favorite parks when he was littler — the zoo, children’s fairyland in oakland, they make great art and bring back sweet memories — and a picture of mr. messy in the tub. :)
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