You never noticed something before, and all of a sudden, it crosses your path almost daily. We’ve all experienced this, I’m sure. The most recent of my personal “what in the…” occurrences has been, ironically, somewhat public. It all began with a Top Ten: Modern Bathtubs piece I compiled a couple weeks ago and has since morphed into the Vieques Tub by Patricia Urquiola that caught my eye from its tiny home store window display in the center of Siena, Italy two days ago.

Vieques Tub. Designed by Patricia Urquiola for Agape.

The steel tub was designed in 2008 by the Spanish-born, Italian-wed designer Patricia Urquiola on behalf of the Italian company, Agape. She created the Vieques tub with a two-toned finish that features a light, white interior and a dark grey exterior for a heavy contrast. It’s most similar to the Reminiscence Tub by American Standard (#6) of the Top Ten, though I really like the trough-like (in the best sense of the word) feel of its raw, straight sides and blunt edges. To add a slightly different spin to it’s clean cut facade, two raised ridges find their way around the circumference of the grey exterior.

Even though it’s look is both unorthodox and unrefined, Urquiola found a way to tone down the stark feel of steel by adding an optional teak shelf on the side and angled backrest that dives into the tub. The size measures up to a comfortable size: 66-7/8″L x 28-3/8″W x 23-5/8″H (170cm x 72cm x 60cm).

Upon seeing the Vieques up close and in person, I realized the amount of depth that adding a deep shade of grey can have on a bathroom space. In fact, if I were designing a bathing space around that tub, I’d even consider coupling it with Urquiola’s Déchirer tiles for Mutina in their dark, earthy tones and textures. I should be careful what I wish for though… next I’ll be the one kicked out of a restaurant for “taking pictures of bathroom tiles”.