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“Curved Twist” is the largest yet KUFtwist screen. Exhibited at Saatchi Gallery during CollectOpen 2017.

“Marble” print screen by Laura Silke. Part of the Royal College of Art graduation show in 2013.

“White Screen” KUFtwist in Jørn Utzon’s house Can Lis in Mallorca.

A sprinkling of 90s era design has been allowed to resurface in recent years—mostly fashion, and mostly either as irony or nostalgia. It’s safe to say, however, some ideas from our design past may happily never reappear, and the vertical window blinds made popular in the 90s, have to be one of them. Those humble verticals, however, have been revived but totally reimagined by a young designer and goldsmith Kia Utzon-Frank.

Kia’s version, titled the KUFTwist (FKA the Louver Twisting Comb), combines science, innovation, and artistry. Regular blinds require a pull mechanism or motorised system to control shade and create privacy—they are full of purpose but lack any aesthetic or artistic appeal. KUFTwist blinds are cordless and invite users to create different openings, and allow light in through various patterns and shapes.

Very basically, a series of comb-like modules are arranged to move across a vertical plane and twist material individually into states of open or close as the mechanism is moved upwards or downwards. The combs can then be arranged into unique forms and figures—far beyond the scope of the simple, ho-hum verticals of our past. While the concept is yet to be commercialised, Kia has refined the idea into various applications, working with textile designer Fay McCaul, for example, and also proposing to add a motorised system which would be controlled using an app.

[Images courtesy of KUFstudios. Photography by Dunja Opalko.]

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