The many aspects of writing as a cultural technology, we are happy to discover in this conference, gain another very special facet in Kang Byung-in’s presentation about »writing methods of the East and the West and their difference in expression«. Kang Byung-in is a prominent calligrapher and visual artist in Seoul, Korea.

He shares with us his deep insights in the nature of writing as being part of the human condition and describes the parallels and crucial differences between eastern and western practice of writing and script. »There is not much difference between the East and the West in regards to the creation and development of letters. However, the tools to write the letters are distinctively different in these cultures. While the West used the end of a bird’s feather, the East made a brush using animal fur. This was the birth and usage of the writing brush.«

As we already heard from Prof. Han, Hangul combines sounds and shapes. According to this, Kang Byung-in’s goal is »to disclose the invisible sound and to elucidate the making of Hangul.«