Hyunguk Ryu The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK/ North Korea) carries forward the legitimacy and culture of calligraphy in people’s lives.
To enrich the writing life of the public, the DPRK government established clear basic principles in the production of calligraphy through the systematization of calligraphy and the unification of handwriting forms that features the standardization of various brushstrokes. In other words, the principles of calligraphy derived from the method of writing letters according to the type of tool were systematized with a focus on formulation, calligraphy, and arrangement, which are calligraphy. This fact means that the basic principles of the practical theory of Korean type have been established through Korean calligraphy.
Under DPRK (starting September 9, 1948), four unique types were identified: ‘Cheongbong,’ ‘Myeongjo,’ ‘Gothic,’ and ‘Songjo.’ These styles enabled a theoretical basis for the prototype and origin of the North Korean typeface for the first time. In addition, it has been confirmed that the technical and aesthetic expressions faced by modern typeface design are continuously improving. These contemporary typefaces have been passed down to digital fonts and have become the seeds of current text fonts.