In architecture school, Minjae Kim would often grow impatient with the glacial speed of creating a building. When he was frustrated, he has said, he would “come home and make a lamp or something silly.” The satisfaction was immense. Eventually, Kim pivoted to furniture design. At his Ridgewood studio, he makes refined yet whimsical pieces. This solo show at Nina Johnson features 12 new pieces—chairs, tables, and vases—inspired by the interplay between Kim’s Korean heritage and his life in New York. “This is my ‘return’ to Korea,” he says, “and ultimately yet another attempt to fuse my worlds together.” —Jensen Davis