6TH SAITAMA NEW PRODUCT AWARD 2025
Saitama Product & Tourism Assoc.
Saitama Prefecture, Japan
Saitama Prefecture, Japan
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Craft & Goods Category
Grand Prize
Grand Prize
D-SERIES CONCEPT MODEL — BOUBA / KIKI HOBBY HORSE CHAIR
Which one is Bouba and which is Kiki?
which one is ..
Bouba/Kiki effect — THE CONCEPT
A rocking horse chair that lets you rediscover
the shape-memory hidden in your subconscious.
This rocking horse chair places the Bouba-Kiki Effect — the innate connection between shape and sound — at the heart of its design. It is a work that fuses sight, touch, and sensibility. The contrast between flowing curves and sharp angles awakens a difference in feeling that rises from somewhere beneath conscious thought.
More than a chair, it is a wellness tool crafted to help you rediscover your own senses through form and texture.
Regardless of language, gender, or age, most people associate round shapes with "Bouba" and angular shapes with "Kiki" — this is the Bouba-Kiki Effect. BBKK invites you to experience that universal instinct with your whole body.
TYPE 01
BB / The rounded rocking horse chair
Flowing curves envelop your entire body. Sight, touch, and emotion converge — as if the boundary between mind and body gently dissolves. An encounter with the memory of softness that sleeps within you.
TYPE 02
KK / The angular rocking horse chair
Sharp edges call forth a distinctive tension and exhilaration. Unsettling? Compelling? Whichever you feel first reveals the hidden tendencies of your own perception.
MATERIALS & CRAFT
Made from cedar and cypress plywood grown in the mountains of Yokoze, Chichibu District, Saitama. The design embraces local forest resources, weaving the cycle of timber into its very form.
CNC routers carve complex curves and angular silhouettes with exacting precision. Layered construction yields both a distinctive three-dimensionality and structural strength.
We actively reclaim offcuts and waste from forestry operations. By breathing new life and value into wood that would otherwise be discarded, we aim to give back to the local community and the environment.
"By making the most of timber that would otherwise go to waste, we want to contribute to the community around us.
We believe a rocking horse that carries the story of its materials can enrich the senses of those who ride it."
6TH SAITAMA NEW PRODUCT AWARD 2025
ABOUT TATELAB.
TATELab. is a creative studio devoted to products and experiences that awaken the power of perception — things you see, touch, and ride that draw out your ability to feel.
Under the concept of "sensory expansion," we shine a light on the subtle surprises and mysteries woven into everyday life. BBKK is that philosophy made tangible in wood. If the question "Why do I feel this way?" opens your senses even a little wider, our work is done.
VISIT TATELab. →
The answer you choose becomes a mirror of your own senses.
An invitation to rediscover the shape-memory within you.
"The idea of a rocking horse that adults can enjoy is truly compelling. Incorporating a psychological phenomenon into product design is refreshingly original. A one-of-a-kind product that stimulates thought through sensory experience."
— JURY COMMENT