Neko Goten Cat Tower by Hitomi Otake is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2021 Silver A' Design Award in Pet Care, Toys, Supplies and Products for Animals Design Competition Category.
SilverPet Care· 2021
Neko Goten Cat Tower
by Hitomi Otake
Client: Design:DESIGN Iris Co., Ltd. /Client:FURUSAKI Co., Ltd.
Silver A' Design Award Winner in Pet Care Category
Verified Award Winner
Verify Award Status for #107842The Design
About Neko Goten Cat Tower
Neko Goten is a cat tower designed to resemble high-end furniture. The structure is made of oak and cedar wood from Fukui Prefecture in Japan and is finished by hand by furniture craftsmen. Neko Goten measures 2200 mm in width, 600 mm in depth and 1800 mm in height. The design combines a staircase, a clawing board, a clear hemisphere, a roller, a spherical shelter, a feeding area with storage and a bed area. The compact play area suits rental homes, cat cafes and clinics where renovation for cats is not possible.
The Recognition
About the Silver A' Design Award
Neko Goten Cat Tower is a Silver A' Design Award winner, an extraordinarily prestigious recognition granted to top-of-the-line, gorgeous, and impressive designs. Silver winners are tremendously brilliant and exceedingly creative works that illustrate the outstanding expertise, talent, and acuity of their designers. Neko Goten Cat Tower is expected to be a wonderful, showpiece work that is remarkably professional and profoundly innovative. This Silver A' Design Award-winning design is a highly notable, admired invention that benefits and advances the boundaries of art, science, design, and technology. Neko Goten Cat Tower is a vastly envied creation that evokes desires, introduces positive feelings, and sparks amazement and wonderment.
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Grand Interview
Your innovative integration of Japanese craftsmanship and cedar wood from Fukui Prefecture in the Neko Goten Cat Tower has garnered significant recognition, including a Silver A' Design Award - what inspired you to combine traditional woodworking techniques with contemporary pet furniture design?
Our client, the co-developer Furusaki Co.,ltd., is located in Fukui Prefecture, Japan, and makes wooden furniture. They asked us to develop original products using local wood, so we started talking about making the highest-quality, modern, wonderful furniture for cats that would be accepted worldwide, using the traditional woodworking techniques of Japanese furniture craftsmen.
The Neko Goten Cat Tower's multifunctional design incorporates sleeping, toilet, and eating spaces while maintaining aesthetic appeal - how did you balance the practical needs of cats with the desire to create a piece that serves as an interior accent?
e got ideas from episodes of people who love cats and how people who love cats design their homes, and also thought about what is needed to make even small Japanese homes, such as rental housing and cat cafes, comfortable and relaxing for cats. We also wanted to create a beautiful exterior that would allow people to enjoy the beauty of the Japanese cedar from Fukui Prefecture, so that the interior would not only be pleasing to cats but also to their owners, and we paid close attention to the appearance and sense of depth of the interior. To achieve this, we repeatedly used CG and video to verify the balance.
What specific insights about feline behavior and habits influenced the architectural layout and interactive elements of the Neko Goten Cat Tower, particularly the placement of the clear hemisphere, roller, and catwalk features?
We have created these cat towers with reference to the architecture of cat lovers and the interiors of cat cafes in Japan, while also considering the environment in which cats can play and live comfortably, and with an understanding of their natural behavior. In particular, the transparent hemispherical structure is placed at the top so that cat lovers can look at the soles of their cats' paws from below, and it is a space where cats can also sleep in peace. In Japanese rental housing, it is not easy to make a catwalk because you can't even hammer a nail into the wall. “Nekogoten” can be placed to create the best space for cats.
Behind the Design
Press Kit
Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.
- Unique Properties
- It is a very luxurious cat tower that your cat can play with safely.
It has been designed with a comfortable environment for cats to live in, and the look and feel of the interior and the gravity of the interior are carefully considered to please the cat as well as the owner. - Dimensions & Packaging
- Width 2200mm x Depth 600mm x Height 1800mm
- Tags
- Cat Furniture, Cat Tower, Cat Design, Pet Furniture, Pet Design, Cats, Wooden Furniture, Japanese Furniture, Japanese Crafts, Japanese Design
- Production Technology
- "Neko Goten" is a product that makes use of wood from Fukui Prefecture and the skills of furniture craftsmen. It is made of oak and cedar wood and finished by hand by craftsmen.
- Design Challenge
- It was developed for use in rental houses, cat cafes and veterinary clinics where home renovation for cats is not possible, but its large size and various functions make it difficult to fit into Japanese homes.
It is difficult to assemble and deliver, so it is necessary to consider packaging and delivery methods such as shipping to overseas locations. - Research
- It's a design that has been researched and researched to ensure that cats feel comfortable playing in the "Neko Goten", with a variety of opinions taken into account, including the habits of cats, the environment surrounding cats, and what people who own cats are looking for in a cat owner.
- Inspiration
- "Neko Goten" is a new product developed in cooperation with FURUSAKI Co., Ltd. This is a new product development project using wood and craftsmanship from Fukui Prefecture. "Neko Goten" is a cat tower that resembles high-end furniture where cats can play safely. It is a compact cat play area that can be placed in a Japanese rental house or cat cafe. It is a gem made on the basis of understanding the behavior of cats and was designed with attention to detail.
- Project Duration
- The project will begin in Tokyo in January 2020, with completion in June 2020 and a Japanese crowdfunding launch in July 2020.
- Operation Flow
- This product has a staircase on the left side with a hole in the ground and a clawing board next to the staircase. The cat can relax in the clear hemisphere above it.
In the middle, the cat runs on a roller, and the upper sphere is the cat's home.
The lower part on the right side is the cat's food area, where he can store his plates and food. Above that is the cat's bed area. This is a play area for the cat that can be climbed up the stairs above it or played on the catwalk. - Team Members
- Designer:Hitomi Otake
CG Perspective:Yasuhiro Tanaka - Image Credits
- Photo:FURUSAKI Co., Ltd.
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