NINA CHO

I was born in the United States and raised in Korea. I studied woodworking and furniture design as an undergraduate at Hongik University in Seoul. The program encouraged me to tell my own story and I was taught to create unique pieces of furniture inspired by my identity. I moved to the US shortly after graduating to study 3D Design at Cranbrook Academy of Art, where I found freedom to continue to develop my own process. My education led me to a personal and distinctive approach to design.

In addition to my education, I am influenced by the artistic ethic of my Korean heritage. Those ethics have led me to a reductive aesthetic, in which I merge Eastern philosophy with experimental form. “It is modest but not humble, and impressive but not extravagant.” translation of a Korean adage…. I admire this as an attitude and also as an aesthetic. I pursue an ideal that is impressive without extravagance. By avoiding unnecessary factors, the concept is revealed.