Interviews with Hitomi Otake

My company is involved in a wide range of services including space design, product design, graphic design, display design, and creative direction. We have many clients in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Australia, and other places outside of Japan, and we work with clients in a variety of industries through design.

For me, design is a means to solve clients' business problems, and a way to communicate various spaces and products to the world through design.

Le Corbusier's "Chapelle Notre-Dame du Haut" for architecture
For products, "Miss Blanche" by Shiro Kuramata

I like all of Alvar Aalto's architecture and products.
From architecture to furniture, glassware, and other daily necessities, all of his designs are functional and considerate of the people who live and use them.

This is the interior design of a restroom space for a restaurant. We tried to understand the concept of the restaurant and design every detail in the restroom to make it easy for people to use.

I often use old materials used in Japan for interior design and traditional Japanese paper for Japanese style interiors. I am fascinated by materials that have been used in Japan for a long time.

I think I'm most creative when I receive a job offer from a client, discuss and sketch the ideas that come up in the course of repeated meetings, and think of a three-dimensional design from 2D to 3D.

When I design, I draw sketches, make drawings based on the sketches, draw 3DCG perspective, and then create spaces and products. I am always conscious of the fact that there are people who will use the products and spaces, and I focus on designs that are not only beautiful but also comfortable for the people who will use them. I am always conscious of the people who will use my products and spaces.

I think about the people who will use the product beyond the design, and when I imagine people using the space or product, I am excited to make it a reality as soon as possible.

While incorporating the various opinions of the client and the production company, I am truly glad to be doing this job when the design I feel is beautiful and the people who use it are happy with it.

Don't do designs that are self-serving. Do not compromise on the design while incorporating various opinions. I believe that it is important to design with the awareness that people will pay for and use the spaces and products that I design.

Consider whether the design is not only beautiful but also functional.

In creating spaces, packages, and products, I think it is the responsibility of the designer to always be aware of new materials and technologies, while taking into account the budget and the client's requirements, and to be mindful of proposing to the client materials that are better for the environment and systems that can contribute to society.

I believe that the design field will evolve further if we continue to propose ideas for a more creative future by teaming up with people from various fields, such as designers and scientists, designers and entrepreneurs, etc., and designers and politicians.

In the future, I would like to have an exhibition.

All of my design inspiration comes from conversations with my clients. For this reason, I usually watch and experience art, design, and architecture from all over the world with awareness, and sometimes I even take in movies and books as a source of inspiration.

I do not have a fixed design style of my own. However, by incorporating natural materials (wood and Japanese paper) and Japanese traditions into my style as much as possible, I would like to transmit Japanese design to the world.

Since I live in Japan and my roots are in Kyoto, where many of Japan's important cultural heritage buildings are located, I am naturally drawn to Japanese temple architecture and the beauty of gardens. So when I am asked to design something Japanese, I am grateful for this environment. However, there is a tendency in Japan to think that Western and European design is cutting edge and cool, so I look forward to a future where people pay a little more attention to Japanese design again.

We try to have frequent conversations with our clients, and we work together to define a clear conceptual goal before starting the design process, so that we can reach the final goal even if the various opinions within the company intersect.

The job of a designer is not only to create beautiful designs but also to be able to think together about how to solve problems using design and how to generate profits.
I think it is important to choose a design partner who can grow with you beyond the end of the design process.

When designing, the process involves drawing sketches, creating drawings based on those sketches, creating 3DCG perspective, ordering material samples for spaces, creating prototypes for products, and actually creating spaces and products.

Antique display shelves that were used in Europe for centuries
Flower vase from Iittala's Alvar Aalto Collection
Miniature of artwork by Taro Okamoto
Apple's iMac Pro
Japanese Oya-yaki clay bell

As a designer, you should always keep yourself up-to-date with the latest information and art, and act on whatever you experience as if it will lead to your own design.
If you believe that any experience you have will someday be beneficial to your work, then everything that happens will lead to a wonderful life!

In both good and bad ways, the boundary between personal and professional life disappears. I don't feel stressed because I'm doing work that I love, but no matter what I see or experience, I can't help but think about how I can apply it to my own designs.

I value my intuition and my senses. If I feel that I am not satisfied or that the ratio is not comfortable, I will make minor adjustments until I am satisfied.

We believe that the most important thing is to have good communication skills with clients.

Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, Dimension
A&A Vectorworks, Archicad
Apple iMac Pro, iPad

I consciously set aside time for meals and walks, and I try to take a nap whenever I feel like I'm not getting enough sleep, although I sometimes concentrate on a batch when I'm in the mood.I make the most of my morning hours.

It takes time to come up with ideas, but the work itself takes two to three days of concentrated effort.

I am often asked "When do you come up with designs? When do you suddenly get an idea? "
I answer that I don't suddenly get an idea, but that I come up with design ideas based on my daily thoughts and experiences.

This was the renewal design of a 20-room Japanese inn built in 1965. It was a tough job because we worked on the construction while operating the business, and we even designed the displays ourselves, but the best experience was that the work was well received both domestically and internationally, and the ryokan became very popular with foreign tourists.

Small and medium-sized restaurant owners, manufacturing companies that want to create their own products, IT business companies, pet supply companies, and sporting goods companies.

I love Apple's product design. I think the reason why Apple's products are loved by fans all over the world is not only because of their beautiful appearance in every detail, but also because of the unified design of the products, packaging, and visuals.

Our goal is to become a company that receives offers for space and product design not only from Japan, but from all over the world, and to build a great team.
I would also like to raise the status of the designer profession in Japan and communicate to more companies that they should incorporate ideas from a design perspective into their management.

Drawings and 3DCG perspective are done by a team of staff, but the design is undertaken by one person.

Currently, I am receiving offers for product design and package design from companies in Japan and abroad.

Please make an appointment via email. We can communicate in English via email.
info@design-iris.co.jp

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.

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.

Compared to a standard cat tower, this product is quite large, but it is also attractive because it can be customized to suit the needs of cats, such as the fact that various elements can be used separately, as well as being safe, so it can be used in limited spaces such as rental housing in Japan and cat cafes.

By using laminated wood with a natural striped pattern made from a combination of Japanese red pine and Japanese white pine from Fukui Prefecture for the steps, we were able to achieve a wonderful level of detail without the need for painting, and we were also able to use some sturdy oak wood to enhance the strength of the product. It would have been difficult to develop such a wonderful product without the traditional woodworking techniques and knowledge of the furniture craftsmen of Fukui Prefecture.

As there were cat lovers on the project team, we asked them about the habits of cats and the needs of cat lovers. After it was completed, we tested it again and again to see how cats would play with it, and we were relieved that it was accepted.

The word “nekogoten” means “the finest house for cats” in Japanese, so in that sense it is a product that is like a small building, where cats can exercise, rest and eat in safety. I think it is the result of the skills of wonderful craftsmen that they were able to express the spatial design between different functional areas in a single product.

The most important thing was that the furniture was made using local wood from Fukui Prefecture in Japan, and that the furniture was made by woodwork furniture craftsmen using their traditional craftsmanship to make original products for cats, so it is not a consumable product, but rather a gift for cats that will last a lifetime. In that sense, it is not a cheap disposable pet product, but rather a product that can remain in the home of a cat lover as interior decoration even after the cat is gone, along with memories of the cat.

The spherical house was made without using nails for the safety of the cats, and the size of the catwalk and steps was verified many times to ensure that the cats could play safely. Because it is difficult to assemble and deliver, we feel that it is necessary to consider packaging and delivery methods, such as shipping overseas.

There are many disposable pet products in the world. Of course, there are many things that are consumable, but things like furniture for pets made from thinned wood, like this “Nekogoten”, can be a gift for a pet that will last a lifetime, and I think that they will be loved for a long time as products that allow both the owner and the pet to live comfortably.