How to create Korean angojigi door joinery

Above: So Joong-Han with his Angojigi Three-tier Cabinet in zelkova, ‘black ink’ woods and forged iron hardware. The sliding doors are removable for easy access and also to potentially create display areas. Each door has a dual panel which slides behind it as well as being able to open outward on hinges.

Words: So Joong-Han
Photos: Ho-Young Ahn

I am a certified somokjang – a traditional Korean master of fine woodworking. Just as every culture has its own philosophy and heritage in the way it shapes wood, my work is rooted in the distinctive craftsmanship and design philosophy of Korean furniture making.

In Korea, as in many other countries, there exists a long lineage of master woodworkers who embody the spirit of traditional craftsmanship. Collectively, they are known as mokjang, or masters of woodcraft. These artisans are classified into two primary categories based on the scale and function of their work.

In Korean, dae means large and so means small. Daemokjang are large-scale carpenters who build the structural framework of traditional Korean architecture – hanok houses, palaces, and temples. They join massive beams and pillars without nails, using intricate interlocking methods. In contrast, somokjang are fine woodworkers who craft the interiors within those buildings. They make doors, windows, and furniture – objects that dwell closest to people’s everyday lives.

In this lineage, I continue the tradition not of monumental architecture, but of the intimate – creating furniture and wooden objects that live alongside people, carrying both function and quiet beauty. My craft represents the enduring connection between Korean tradition and the human experience of living with wood.

So Joong-Han shows the sliding operation of a sample angojigi door.

The art of Korean joinery

One of the most distinctive and sophisticated features of traditional Korean woodworking lies in its joinery, known as jamajchum. For centuries, Korean artisans have crafted furniture without a single nail, relying solely on the precise interlocking of carefully carved wooden parts.

This technique demands a far higher level of skill than simply fastening pieces with metal. Yet the result is remarkable – each piece of furniture can breathe with nature, adapting to the expansion and contraction of wood caused by changes in temperature and humidity.

Somokjang artisans have long created the wooden frames of drawers, doors, and boxes using traditional joinery such as mortise and tenon, shoulder, butt and mitre joints.

The angojigi door

The traditional Korean house or hanok, represents the pinnacle of adaptive architecture – a structure that lives and breathes with the changing seasons. The angojigi door reflects the uniquely Korean spirit of joinery and is an art form that I seek to reinterpret through my contemporary work.

It is an ingenious single structure that slides and transforms to open wide or close as needed. Unlike a conventional sliding or hinged door, the angojigi combines both mechanisms into one elegant system.

Close-up views of the angojigi door showing the construction and hinging.

Angojigi structure and its philosophy

Imagine four connected door panels. The two central doors slide outward to the sides, and then the outer doors swing open on hinges. When fully opened, the wall itself disappears, dissolving the boundary between interior and exterior space.

Angojigi literally means ‘to embrace and to support’. It’s a structure in which one door panel holds and supports another, symbolising both physical connection and emotional inclusion. It embodies an architectural philosophy translated into furniture, as shown in my Angojigi Cabinet.

1. There are two door frames, the smaller one sits behind the larger front one and slides within a C-shaped frame.

First encounter

In the early years of my craft, I made furniture using only conventional hinged doors. At that time, I had never even heard of the angojigi technique. My first encounter with it came by chance, seeing the work of another certified master. I was immediately captivated by its design – so fluid, balanced, and alive with quiet intelligence.

I discovered that this technique is one of the most intricate and distinctive forms of Korean joinery, handed down since the Joseon Dynasty. Intrigued, I began observing real examples, studying their mechanisms, and sketching the structural logic that allowed them to function so elegantly.

2. The front door is 118mm high. 3. The rear door is 110mm high however both doors are the same width.

Under the guidance of my father and master craftsman, Soh Byung-jin, I gradually developed my own guidelines and began the demanding process of mastering this rare art.

Precision beyond a millimetre

After completing my first Angojigi Cabinet, I realised the technique was much harder than I had imagined. It requires not only skill, but unwavering patience and exacting precision.

4. Both doors are 18mm thick and note the way the door frame is built up from a secondary wood faced in a more exotic wood.

The angojigi door combines both sliding and swinging functions into a single, seamless structure – meaning every component must align with flawless accuracy. A deviation of even one millimetre can throw the entire mechanism off balance. The door will neither slide nor open properly.

5. There is an 20mm thick C-frame that is attached to the back the front door. The inner door slides within grooves in the C-frame. 6. Part of the the C-frame is 8mm thick. This method first makes a rectangular frame. 7. There is a groove 6mm wide which will accommodate the inner door.

To achieve such precision, each piece of wood must be planed, joined, and adjusted with almost meditative care. Even for an experienced craftsperson, completing an angojigi piece properly requires at least a week of concentrated work. This explains why few woodworkers attempt it, and perhaps why I found myself irresistibly drawn to it.

8. The groove is 4mm deep.

Embraced and embracing

At the heart of the angojigi technique lies a quietly poetic interaction between two doors. The inner (embraced) door operates as a sliding door. The outer (embracing) door opens outward like a hinged door, gently wrapping around the inner door.

The outer embracing door must be slightly larger than the door it enfolds. In my own design, the left panel takes on this role, measuring 8mm wider than the inner sliding door.

9. Only 2mm thick edge of the groove remains, so care is needed when creating all the parts.

To allow the two doors to move in harmony, I add a small rail structure behind the outer door – a subtle but crucial element that enables the sliding motion when the doors are joined. At the same time, the upper and lower components must be hand-fitted and perfectly aligned so that, when closed, the pair functions as a single hinged door.

Sliding, hinging, and locking coexist and interact within a single structure that defines the angojigi method: a perfect marriage of engineering precision and aesthetic grace.

10. In traditional construction, the door frame was made in a C-shaped form. Here the frame is made in one piece.

Beyond its elegance, the angojigi enhanced storage accessibility. Ordinary hinged doors require clear swing space – angojigi doors open fully, sliding and folding outward for easier access and storage, and expanding the sense of openness.

Joinery as connection

For me, joinery is not merely a technique – it is a philosophy of connection. Binding wood to wood is a way of linking tradition to the present, a way of connecting people. Each joint carries the craftsman’s will to connect, endure, and harmonise. My work seeks to breathe contemporary life into the inherited wisdom of Korean joinery, where precision and empathy coexist.

11. The rectangular frame is sawn to size creating two C-frames.

I hope fellow wood artisans will find inspiration in the strength and quiet beauty of Korean joinery. May our craftsmanship transcend borders, becoming a meaningful exchange that inspires makers around the world.

Making the angojigi door

The angojigi door has an outer door, an inner door, and an outer frame equipped with a rail. The outer door frame is referred to as A, and the inner door frame as B. Both share the same width, but frame B is made 8mm shorter in height than frame A.

This difference allows the inner frame to overlap perfectly within the outer C-frame, creating the signature layered structure of the angojigi design.

12. The C-frame, when prepared with all the grooves made, is attached to the rear of the front door.

Precision by hand

Although the entire process is done by hand, the precision required is that of a machine. I use traditional handplanes to very finely plane the panels to ensure the exact 8mm height difference.

13. Applying glue to the C-frame.

Allowing for extra length in the frame

The outer C-frame is built 10mm longer than the combined width of both panels. For example, if each door panel measures 200mm, the C-frame is constructed to be around 410–420mm in total width.

14, 15. The C-frame is glued and clamped to the rear of the front door. The C-frame already has the grooves made which the inner door slides in.

In traditional construction, the door frame was made in a C-shaped form and then joined with the door panels. However, this method is slightly more complex and demanding.

Through repeated practice, I discovered that crafting a rectangular frame first and then cutting it to fit the doors is more efficient. This has become one of my personal techniques.

16. For the rear door the tongue that slides in the frame groove is cut on the tablesaw.

Crafting the rail

The outer door rail is set 2mm inward from the edge. The width of the rail is 6mm, and the depth is 4mm. This groove allows the door to slide and lock smoothly in place.

17. Trimming the frame excess flush with the door edge.

Creating the step joint

Once the adhesive is fully dried, a step joint (teok-gagong) is machined into the outer door so the inner panel (B) can slide neatly inside it.

Traditionally, this step was entirely hand cut, but today, many artisans – myself included – use a tablesaw for greater precision.

In classical terminology, the rail section is called am-jangbu (female tenon), and the inserted part of the door is called sut-jangbu (male tenon). The two must be perfectly proportioned to allow seamless movement.

18,19, 20. Showing how the rear smaller door slides within the C-frame.

Cutting and assembly

The extended outer frame is trimmed to match the final length of the outer door panel (A). The inner panel (B) should fit smoothly within the bonded outer frame without friction.

Attaching hinges – the dual mechanism

Once assembled, the angojigi door functions as a sliding door. By attaching hinges, it also becomes a swinging door, embodying both sliding and opening mechanisms in one structure – a defining feature of the angojigi design.

When installing hinges, the alignment between the two panels must be flawless. Even a 0.5mm deviation can cause the door to rub or fail to open smoothly.

This article was prepared with the assistance of Eun Ji Choi

First published in Australian Wood Review, issue 130, March 2026

So Joong-Han @sojoonghan_ was profiled in Australian Wood Review, issue 128, September 2025. Learn more about So Joong-Han at www.gobjet.com