Today we’d like to introduce you to SoungYoung Park.
Hi SoungYoung, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I was inspired to pursue Art Taekwondo after watching So You Think You Can Dance in 2011. Seeing how dance could move people emotionally made me think, “What if I combine Taekwondo with dance? It could be both powerful and elegant at the same time!”
From that moment, I dreamed of becoming a global Taekwondo performance director and creating large-scale martial arts performances in places like Las Vegas and Broadway in New York.
For more than 15 years, I have continued pursuing that vision. In 2022, I came to the United States alone to expand Art Taekwondo internationally. Since then, I have traveled across the country, leading more than 70 seminars and performances, including performances for the San Francisco Giants and the Golden State Warriors halftime show, while sharing my philosophy of “Art Taekwondo” — a style that combines traditional Taekwondo with dance and artistic performance.
Currently, my focus is on Edutainment: creating more engaging and inspiring experiences for students through Art Taekwondo. My goal is to help younger generations connect with martial arts not only as a sport, but also as a creative and cultural art form that develops five core values: respect, consistency, discipline, resilience, and artistry.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
One of the biggest challenges was dealing with prejudice and skepticism from some senior Taekwondo masters and people in the traditional martial arts community. Many people were not interested in introducing artistic or performance-based content into their schools. At times, my vision of combining Taekwondo with dance and performance was not taken seriously.
Another challenge was that I was building “My” market completely from scratch. There was no existing market or clear path for “Art Taekwondo,” because almost nobody had done this before in the way I envisioned it. I had to create the audience, the educational system, and the business opportunities around it. That meant constantly educating people on why Art Taekwondo matters and how it could positively impact students and communities.
Since I was also younger than many other masters, some people treated me more like a student than a professional instructor or performance director. Because of that, there were also situations where people expected endless discounts or undervalued my work because they did not fully understand the creative and educational side of Art Taekwondo.
But those experiences also helped me become more resilient and more confident in my mission.
Over time, I realized that whenever you try to create something new in a traditional field, resistance is unavoidable. Instead of letting that discourage me, I used it as motivation to continue fortifying my passion and showing people how martial arts can evolve while still respecting its roots.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Art Taekwondo?
Art Taekwondo is a creative martial arts education and performing arts brand that combines traditional Taekwondo with dance and artistic expression.
We specialize in
1. Taekwonmu seminars, blending Taekwondo with K-pop, hip-hop, jazz, and contemporary dance to create stage performances for students.
2. Leadership seminars for educators on teaching Taekwonmu and advanced kicking techniques, along with discipline-focused classes that help teenagers build respect.
What sets us apart is combining martial arts, performance, and education into one experience that develops both technical skill and creativity.
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
What matters most to me is creating genuine motivation through enjoyable experiences in Art Taekwondo.
I’ve seen many students lose interest or even give up because of negative experiences from their Taekwondo school.
That’s why my priority is to make sure they enjoy the process while they are with me, whether they continue Taekwondo long-term or not. For me, they need to leave with positive memories and a healthy relationship with martial arts.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/art_taekwondo/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ArTaekwondo/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@ArtTaekwondo
