January 20th, 2023

Oil Painting of H2 Bathroom Sparks Controversy

The girls' bathrooms at Berkeley High are the designated location for many events, whether it be cacophonous displays of weeping, peer review of breakup text rough drafts, or good old fashioned dishing of the dirt. For these reasons, it could be argued that these lavatories are among some of the most sacred places on the Berkeley High School campus. It was these characteristics that made them such an appealing subject to a student artist, who prefers to remain anonymous. After taking nearly as long as the A building construction, her final product, a 20 by 30 foot oil piece, was painted onsite and completed just last Wednesday. Critics are describing the painting as "a typical girl's bathroom in the 21st century, portrayed in Renaissance style". "What sets it apart from similar work is its brutal honesty," remarks a BHS art teacher. The painting makes an excellent usage of color, using dull tones to accurately evoke the broken fixtures of the water closet, such as the sink clogged with beige paper towels and vomit. Visitors feel the pain of the toilet paper dispenser, which has been wrenched from its place on the wall and pummeled to the floor by a girl who "pregamed" rally day. The bright color of the girls' clothes in the painting inspires hope against the dull surroundings and represents the promise of our youth. On the left, we see a girl clad in sunny yellow bent over the sinks, perhaps engaging in illicit substances. Two young ladies towards the center of the composition, in peony pink and kelly green, adeptly record a TikTok, while simultaneously inhaling from an electronic nicotine delivery system. The breadth of the artist's skill is demonstrated in this section as she accurately depicts the girls mid-twerk. The largest stall's door is haphazardly thrown open, seven sets of broken locks on display. Inside the stall, we see a circle of girls performing what appears to be a cult ritual on the floor, the girls' mouths appear to be open in some sort of song as they all clutch inverted pentagrams to their hearts.

Students who discovered the art found it "kind of invasive," the oil paints "smellier than G1," and described the artist as a "loser who's clearly never passed AP Blinker". However, with outside critic response so positive, future prospects for the painting include SMOMA or potentially the Louvre.