Annie Kantor knows a thing or two about pattern. After graduating at the Rhode Island School of Design with a BFA in Textile Design in 1994, she began a career designing woven fabrics, most recently as the Head of the Custom Studio at Maharam. The Oakland-California based designer, whose company AJK Design Studio debuted at this year’s ICFF in New York City, made the switch to the world of metal after finding a gap in the market for interior custom metal work while working on a personal architectural project. Based on her own repeating-pattern designs, Kantor launched AKJ Design Studio, where she produces a series of custom registers and vents inspired by, and created with, tools linked to the textile industry.
The details in her metal work are based on hand-drawn sketches and paintings, and inspired by varied sources — from a tile floor in Istanbul to a tennis court’s chain-link fence. Using precision laser and water-jet technology, her patterns are cut out of metal and manufactured in the U.S. Products are custom fabricated in steel for floor, wall, or ceiling-mount, and created in any size to suit project requirements.
Don’t see exactly what you are looking for? AJK Design Studio will also work directly with architects and designers to create specific designs unique to their projects.
Images courtesy of AJK Design Studio except where noted.
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