Part 0. Designer Introduction
Q. Hello. Could you briefly introduce yourself, Designer Lee Juhyun of Cosmope Type?
Hello. I'm Juhyun Lee, a designer at Cosmope Type. Cosmope Type creates fonts through various visual experiments. I mainly focus on the new textures created when fonts are typeset.
Q. Wow, that sentence sounds great. Could you explain a bit more about the new textures?
For example, imagine the same text written in different fonts. Even with the same serif fonts, the texture on the surface (screen) changes depending on the roundness, thickness, length, and spacing of the serifs. So when initially planning a font, I tend to observe the feeling created when the small elements are written as text. In the case of "SangA", all the stroke endings are pointed. However, I didn't want the texture to feel too spiky, so I added a few devices to neutralize it. The various design elements all come together to create a solid yet comforting textured feeling.
Q. What made you start font design?
I was interested in various design fields since college. As I tried different things, font design felt very appealing. I enjoyed the time focusing solely on drawing letters, losing track of how much time passed.
Q. I see, it is fun to fill in the letters. Was there a particular moment that made you want to create your own brand?
I worked on many large font production projects involving multiple people. While I learned a lot through those good experiences, it wasn't an environment where my ideas were fully reflected. Going through the process of discussions with others, some of my ideas got pared down which was disappointing. That made me really want to create fonts and a brand embodying my own ideas.
Q. In that case, what would be the keyword to introduce your brand?
The keywords for Cosmope Type are "exploration" and "adventure".
Cosmope Type is a portmanteau of "Cosmos" and "Scope". It means exploring the vast and deep knowledge of the world through beautiful fonts. Whether books or videos, it's hard to imagine them without fonts. I hope Cosmope Type can make the reader's journey of turning paper pages or riding the YouTube algorithm waves more exciting.
Q. [Balance Game] If you had to choose between only using fonts you created for life OR only using fonts created by others, which would you choose?
This is really difficult, but I would choose to only use fonts created by others for life. We live in a 100-year era. It seems like a short life even to enjoy fonts made by other people. Haha.
Part 1. Introducing the "SangA" Font
Q. I'm curious about how "SangA" got started.
I took out some sketches I had done years ago, and unlike before, I got a new feeling from them. The initial sketches had a different structure, but through developing them in various directions, I built the current framework. From the start, I had legible body text in mind when working on it.
Q. What does the name "SangA" mean?
"SangA" is an old word meaning the moon. It's a font with a rich negative space and generous, graceful structure like a full harvest moon. When typeset, it gave the feeling of the crisp autumn air on a deep night with a full moon, so I named it "SangA" to reflect that atmosphere.
Q. What are the key features of "SangA"?
"SangA" has more refined design elements compared to existing serifs. It combines characteristics of serifs and sans-serifs, and I carefully adjusted the angles and sizes of the small serifs to strike a balance. Since it's designed for the balance to look good at small sizes, I recommend it for body text, but its lyrical image and high contrast strokes also allow it to be used for headings depending on the situation! I'm also considering deriving weights, with the goal of a diverse weight family that can handle both heading and body text uses.
Q. What area did you focus on the most when designing "SangA"?
Establishing the Hangul structure was the most difficult. Since the serifs are very small, it was challenging to create a structure somewhere between a serif and sans-serif.
I also put a lot of thought into the angled strokes (ㄱ, ㅅ) - experimenting with the angles and degrees of curves from many perspectives. There were various versions before finalizing the current form.
Q. How would you recommend using "SangA"?
I imagined using it for body text in print novels or self-help books, as well as for YouTube thumbnails, titles, and captions.
Part 2. Designer's Thoughts
Q. What makes a good font?
I think if it's something someone needs, and it has a novelty that didn't exist before, then it's a good font.
Q. What does it take to become a font designer? If you could give fellow and junior designers a word of advice?
I believe anyone can become a font designer if they just have their own individuality and drive to execute. And the capacity to love the letters you created yesterday, or the courage to completely overhaul your previous work. Sometimes we dislike the shapes we made in the past, right? In those cases, you have to either accept them or revise everything, and as long as you can choose either, I think that's enough to be a font designer.
Q. That's such a great point. Some font designers treat their fonts like their own selves. When I see people doing good work, I feel they must really love themselves. Is there anything you hope for as a font designer?
They say fonts are like air, right? It's nice that many people are showing interest in font design these days despite it not being conspicuous. Lots take classes or try making fonts themselves. Just like how Steve Jobs taking a college typography class led to great fonts being used in Apple products, I'm confident this interest in fonts will prove useful someday. Fonts are subtle like air, but I hope people don't forget about them and continue to show great interest and affection going forward.
Q. Could you share any plans for upcoming font releases?
I'm currently working on "Bumnabi" which is being produced with support from the Hangul Font Creation Support Project of the Korea Manhwa Contents Agency. We're aiming for release next year. "Bumnabi" will also have a distinctive texture when longer texts are typeset. I put a lot of effort into modernizing a traditional feel, testing various design elements before settling on the current direction as I derive weights.
Oh, and I'm also producing a specimen book for "SangA"! I'll be officially introducing it as a book soon. Here's a preview of the specimen book!
Release on SandollCloud
Q. We'll see "Bumnabi" on SandollCloud too then? Could you share why you chose Sandoll and a few words on your impressions?
More than anything, it felt like an easy choice since it's a platform used by many designers around me. The cloud system reduces the risk of font files leaking, which is a safety advantage. And I thought the cloud method would be convenient for modifying or updating fonts from both the creator's and user's perspective.
Q. A word for the users welcoming your font on Sandoll?
Please give lots of love to SangA!