Actor and Painter Park Shin-yang Opens Up About His Artistic Journey

Actor and painter Park Shin-yang candidly shared the pressures of his painting career.

On the 4th, a video titled 'Meeting Sung Si-kyung l My First Encounter with Park Shin-yang, Our Conversation Stayed with Me' was released on the YouTube channel 'Sung Si-kyung.'

In the video, Park Shin-yang revealed why he has not sold his artwork for 14 years. He stated, "I started painting because I missed my friend dearly and wanted to understand what my longing was about." He added, "When I paint, there's no room for thoughts like 'How should I sell this?' Time just passed by in that state." He continued, "I can't avoid selling forever. But what I can do now is to show my work to many people, just like I have shown my acting."

Sung Si-kyung responded, "I think you can do it because you have the ability. It seems my worries were unnecessary," and added, "I was unnecessarily concerned about the attitude of an artist who dedicates their life, not just as a hobby."

Park Shin-yang also did not hide the financial burdens of his art activities. He said, "The cost of paint, canvas, materials, and studio expenses far exceed what I imagined. It's serious," and humorously added, "I took the bus and walked up the hill today," eliciting laughter.

When Sung Si-kyung asked, "What allowed you to keep painting for 10 years without selling a single piece?" Park Shin-yang emphasized the essence of his work again. He explained, "I started painting to understand and express the deep longing for my friends during my studies in Russia," and "I was so immersed in exploring my emotions that I didn't have time to think about selling."

He also shared his artistic philosophy, saying, "A painting is not complete until someone sees it and feels something. Just as I have communicated with audiences through acting, I want to show my paintings to many people."

Park Shin-yang is also well-known for being married into a wealthy family, which draws additional interest. In 2002, he married Baek Hye-jin, the granddaughter of the late Chairman Baek Jong-geun and niece of CEO Baek Soon-seok. Baek Hye-jin is known to run a domestic agency for a major U.S. airline and is the granddaughter of a prominent conglomerate that brought ice cream brand H to Korea. The couple reportedly met at a gym in Busan.

According to last year's financial supervisory service electronic disclosure data, Haagen-Dazs Korea recorded sales of 98.5 billion won for the 36th fiscal year (June 2024 - May 2025), a 12% increase from the previous year (87.8 billion won), marking the highest performance since its founding for two consecutive years.

Reporter Kim Se-ah, Ten Asia haesmik@tenasia.co.kr