Born in 1920, Cho Ji Hoon is a canonical poet of modern Korea and a renowned scholar of Korean aesthetics. His poetry is written in a modernist free-verse form, rooted in the literary Sijo that began in the 12th century; it has the intense local flavors and is imbued with the sounds, smells and colors of pre-industrial Korea. Cho Ji Hoon’s first poem appeared in the literary magazine MoonJang in 1939. In 1946, his poetry appeared in the collection 청록집 (“Cheongnok Jip”) along with the works of Park Mokwohl and Pak Doo Zin. The three were known as “Cheongnokpa,” or the “Green Deer Poets.” A professor of Korean language and literature at Korea University for 20 years, Cho Ji Hoon served as the president of the Korean cultural society affiliated with the university and president of the The Society of Korean Poets. He received numerous literary awards and published five poetry collections, as well as many books related to Korean literature and culture. He died in 1968.