Paju, Korea · since 2016
Joined by hand,
along the grain
MOKJAE is a small workshop in Munbal-dong, Paju. We saw and season white oak and black walnut, then join it with mortise and tenon instead of screws. About twenty pieces leave the shop each month — as many as two pairs of hands can finish properly.
Selected works
This season
Each season we choose the boards that have dried best and build a small run from them. Two pieces made from the same drawing are never quite identical — the grain decides.
How we work
No nails, no screws
Every joint is cut, not fastened. Wood swells and shrinks with the seasons, and metal that holds it still gives that movement nowhere to go — eventually the board splits. A joined frame moves with the wood instead of fighting it.
- 01
Seasoning
At least eighteen months air-dried, with a final month indoors to match shop humidity.
- 02
Shaping
Machines set the dimensions; hand planes finish the surface. What you feel is a plane track, not sandpaper.
- 03
Finishing
Three coats of plant-based hardwax oil, which you can re-apply yourself years later.
Come and sit in one
Everything on display can be touched and sat in. Weekend visits are by appointment so we can clear the bench and be there to talk.