“What I do is like a show-and-tell,” Craig Jun Li explained when we spoke, referring to his displays of found objects and archival material—faded photographs, old letters, buttons. Such ephemera made up his January solo exhibition at Chapter NY. “I want to show the effect these materials have had on me,” he added. Yet the show’s title suggests deeper desires: “I Want to Love with No Fear.”

“I blocked the radiators,” he said, explaining a pedestal he built to enclose them. He lowered the gallery’s temperature to simulate the cool, dry air of a rare books room or museum storage—two types of archives he frequents. With the crisp chill, he signaled to visitors: You’re now entering an archive. Bring a jacket.