Calligraphy Q&A with Younghae Chung, Part 2

"Start writing, no matter what. The water does not flow until the faucet is turned on." Louis L'Amour

Advice for beginners, tips on flourishing, being a lefty calligrapher, and more...

We had the most enlightening conversation with an inspiring mama calligrapher, and couldn't fit everything into one post. Here is Part 2 of our Q & A session with Younghae Chung of Logos Calligraphy and Design. 

"It's important to think your way through calligraphy so that it all looks beautiful". Those are wise words spoken by Younghae Chung of Logos Calligraphy during our live Q&A session with her.  From the start of her journey to publishing her first book, Younghae chatted with Heather McKelvey and turned the pages of her journey from an anxious mama to becoming a fearless flourishing artist!

Enter the world of Kalli Camp Academy, a community to learn, flourish, and grow in the art of calligraphy. We aim to make it possible for artists at every skill level and culture to grow in their craft and connect with others on a deeper level through true friendships centered around shared passions. We also aim to support each other and help grow our small businesses as a result of this collaborative endeavor.

What are Younghae's favorite nibs, ink, and paper?

It's no secret, we loved chatting about nibs with Younghae and learning what nib, ink, and paper combinations she shared. Her preferences for nibs are sturdy tips - these include the Nikko G, Hunt 22, Hunt 101, and Leonardt Principal. The favorite go-to ink for this seasoned calligrapher is walnut ink. Why? Younghae explained that she loves how this ink is dip and go (no mixing or stirring required) and there's no frustration with ink flow. When using metallic ink, she prefers the Gillot 404 nib. As far as paper is concerned, there are several types that Younghae recommends. These include HP 32 paper (for practicing), Borden & Riley Boris Layout, and heavyweight paper such as Canson XL  for commission work. Heather and Younghae agreed that the paper determines which ink and nib to use. If you are new to calligraphy, you'll quickly learn that there is usually some trial and error with finding the perfect ink and nib for certain papers. Hence, there is no "recommended" paper, ink, and nib combination. The secret sauce lies in finding out what works best.

What calligraphy tips does Younghae have (especially for lefties)?

Younghae shared her struggle as a lefty to be consistent in her calligraphy. Admittedly, she initially found calligraphy as a lefty to be challenging. The variables of how much pressure to use for proper ink flow, how to angle the paper to prevent smudging ink, using the guidelines properly, plus using an oblique holder took some trial and error, but she finally found a combination that worked.

Aside from turning her paper to a comfortable angle to maintain the necessary 55-degree angle for Copperplate, she found that using a right-handed oblique holder (where the flange is on the left of the pen holder) rather than a straight or left-handed holder worked best for smooth upstrokes, flourishing and ink flow. In the beginning, Younghae only used a straight pen holder. Master penman Michael Sull impacted her willingness to begin using an oblique holder. If you're interested, Younghae has a YouTube video demonstrating how she angles her paper and what holder she uses.

What advice does Younghae have for beautiful flourishing?

Would it surprise you to know that Younghae learned flourishing at a time when there weren't any courses dedicated specifically to the art of flourishing? Although she'd taken an advanced Spencerian class from Michael Sull, Younghae found there wasn't any structure or guidelines for flourishing. She was heavily inspired by The Universal Penman book, and combined concepts from various instructors to create a way to understand, define and teach flourishing. From those principles, she began teaching her own Fearless Flourishing course (which opens for enrollment this month). 

Younghae's course goes beyond just showing flourishes that students can copy but teaches the concepts behind flourishing and the relationship of letters to the flourish. Her goal is to empower students to learn to critique their own work and how to apply the concepts of flourishing to their unique writing circumstances.

As if we weren't inspired enough, Younghae shared that she has begun teaching cursive to elementary students! While homeschooling her sons for five years, she taught them cursive and encouraged them to establish good penmanship. In addition, she found that children as young as fifth grade can learn pointed pen calligraphy, and has started teaching an after-school program this year. 

Behind the scenes of publishing Younghae's book

Younghae published her first book in 2022, Classic Calligraphy for Beginners, and shared what that experience was like. With a desire to structure the book where it would go into deeper depth about Copperplate and Spencerian, she wanted people to get an idea of what they could do with calligraphy through the projects included inside. By including actual projects, Younghae felt like it would motivate people to learn. Rather than focusing on basic drills, which can be boring, Younghae's book focuses more on consistency in strokes. 

One of her biggest struggles with writing the book was figuring out styling for the project photos. Since these projects would demonstrate what could be done with calligraphy and motivate the learning process through beautiful visuals, Younghae used a stylist to help with figuring out the placement of everything and styling each project to be photographed.

What is Younghae's advice for beginners? 

Younghae encourages beginners to spend time forming muscle memory with the basics. She strongly advises beginners to focus on their own journey, not compare their work to other people, focus on one step forward, build muscle memory, participate in online calligraphy challenges, and not be afraid to ask questions.

Current offerings by Younghae are Spencerian and cursive worksheets, Copperplate tracing pads, vegan leather blotter mats, and of course her Fearless Flourishing course (enrollment opens June 26th). She is planning to release a black blotter mat (with calligraphy engravers and live event artists in mind) along with ink wells, a drying mat, and a flourishing book.

Our time with Younghae was well-spent. It's our hope that your takeaways from our conversation will make your creativity flow. 

Until next time, stay creative!

Written by Angenise Rawls, Independent Marketing Assistant and Special Projects Coordinator

Calligraphy Artisan at The Graceful Pen Studio | Instagram: @thegracefulpenstudio | www.thegracefulpenstudio.com