When Eric Levin of Montclair goes into the men’s room, he sometimes brings his camera. But it’s not what you’re thinking.

Levin’s photography (www.ericlevin.net) transforms ordinary, sometimes repellent, bathroom scenes into art. Don’t take our word for it, see for yourself:

Our favorite, a yellow air freshener badge splashes aromatic color against the drab grey walls and white pipes at a Montclair car wash.

Levin, whose day job is senior editor at New Jersey Monthly, (www.njmonthly.com) says he realized bathrooms contained “all kinds of interesting and odd, and sometimes strangely beautiful things that had nothing to do with the gross functions that one might think.”

In Levin’s world, hinges, faucets, and other fixtures are center stage. Bath rugs, soap dishes and mirrors become characters in his elevation of the mundane. Mold and mildew are imperfections that are acceptable. Levin calls it all “strange and beautiful, and kind of wondrous.”

The photos can be found at Raymonds, (www.raymondsnj.com) and various eateries around Montclair. They are on display for sale at the Jacklyn Kling Gallery (www.klingarts.com), in Montclair too.

Beyond bathrooms, Levin’s other photos find a quirky symmetry of ordinariness in walls, siding, fences, stop signs and power lines. The lines that we draw, and never see again.

In a world of sameness, these photos stand out for their insights into our creativity and showcase Levin’s ability to read the writing we’ve left on the wall.