On the 6th, Kyobo Book Centre announced that Seonah Woo (37) was selected as the grand prize winner in the general category of the ‘9th Kyobo Handwriting Contest.’ The contest is organized by the Handwriting Culture Promotion Committee and jointly hosted by Kyobo Book Centre, the Daesan Foundation, and Kyobo Life Insurance. Woo, who said, "Thanks to my stylish father's handwriting, I became attracted to handwriting," wrote Kim Hyejin's work 'Maybe a Good Person' using the pen ‘Zebra Sarasa R 0.4.’ Juror Yoo Ji-won, a typographer, commented, “The lively lift at the right end conveys the joy of writing,” and added, “The rhythm of the lines harmonizes within the page, giving the impression of small droplets gathering to form a large droplet.” Woo Seonah’s handwriting will be made into the ‘Kyobo Handwriting 2023 Woo Seonah’ font and distributed for free in April next year.
Grand Prize Winners from left: Song Yuha in the Children’s Category, Woo Seonah in the General Category, Noh Nayoung in the Youth Category [Photo provided by Kyobo Bookstore]
This year’s contest saw a total of 14,783 participants ranging from 3-year-old children to 93-year-old seniors, showing an increase of about 90% compared to the previous year. Among them, based on three evaluation criteria?aesthetic appeal, originality, and readability?10 grand prize winners and 20 runner-up winners were selected.
Kim Sua, a 17-year-old student who won the grand prize in the youth category with a quote from ‘Leaving That Heart Until the End (Na Taeju),’ said, “Writing itself is a great comfort. And every time I hear people compliment my handwriting as ‘pretty,’ I feel happy, proud, and grateful.” Yoo Sun-ok, the 51-year-old grand prize winner in the general category who quoted ‘Poetry Came to Me (Kim Yong-taek),’ shared, “Writing each stroke and letter allowed me to discard all distractions and focus deeply, making it an immersive experience.”
The 10 grand prize winners will receive certificates along with Kyobo Book Centre gift certificates worth 500,000 KRW and Monami stationery as additional prizes. The 20 runner-up winners will each receive certificates, gift certificates worth 200,000 KRW, and Monami stationery. Five group awards will be given certificates and 200,000 KRW in cash, along with a handwritten nameplate designed in calligraphy featuring the participating group’s name as a supplementary prize. Additionally, the jurors will select seven recipients (one child, one youth, and five general category winners) for the Jury Prize, which recognizes works deemed meaningful and valuable, awarding certificates and Kyobo Book Centre gift certificates worth 100,000 KRW.
At the awards ceremony held on the 6th, Kyobo Book Centre CEO Byung-hyun Ahn said, “When we asked participants why they chose their sentences, the most frequently mentioned words were ‘realization,’ ‘comfort,’ and ‘hope.’ The true value of this contest lies in sharing the messages of realization, comfort, and hope contained in books through handwriting.”
The winning works will be exhibited until the 31st at the Kyobo Book Centre online store and the Kauri Table located at the Kyobo Book Centre Gwanghwamun branch. In addition to the 30 winning pieces, all entries from this year’s contest, past winners’ works, and handwriting from famous individuals will also be showcased.
The Kyobo Handwriting Contest has been held since 2015 as part of the ‘Handwriting Culture Promotion Campaign,’ which aims to reexamine the sociocultural value of handwriting and encourage various handwriting activities. Various committee members, including poet Shin Dalja (chairperson), calligrapher Kang Byung-in, typographer Yoo Ji-won, and singer Kim Jong-jin, actively promote the benefits of handwriting.
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