“Song Mino Painting Lawsuit” Gallery CEO Claims “Demand for Settlement Amount Keeps Rising, Suspect Fame Exploitation, Consider Legal Action”
The gallery responsible for exhibiting and selling his works expressed frustration, suggesting that “it seems like the plaintiff is leveraging Song Mino’s fame” and announced plans to pursue legal action.
On Jan 25th, Lee Byung-gu, CEO of Start Art Korea Gallery, stated in an interview with Ilgan Sports, “In general, when selling artwork, the identity of the collector (buyer) must be clearly verified, especially for future exhibitions or logistical reasons. This becomes even more crucial in the case of a celebrity like Song Mino because there is always a possibility that the buyer might resell the work for a higher price. For this reason, we were more meticulous in verifying details. However, in the case of A (the buyer), their address was unclear, and certain other information was not up to standard. Due to this, we processed a refund and returned the purchase amount. Nevertheless, A refused the refund and filed a lawsuit.”
A appeared on JTBC’s “Scandal Supervisor” on Jan 24th, claiming that they purchased a painting for 25 million KRW during Song Mino’s first solo exhibition in December 2022 through Start Art Korea but have yet to receive the artwork. The piece in question, titled “I thought”, was supposed to be delivered in February 2023 after the exhibition ended. However, the gallery allegedly postponed delivery, citing exhibition schedules.
A filed a civil lawsuit, arguing that they paid for the artwork but never received it. The first court ruled in favor of A, instructing the gallery to either deliver the artwork or refund the payment. Subsequently, A claimed they incurred at least 20 million KRW in legal fees and demanded 40 million KRW in damages, including compensation for mental distress. However, when the second court did not acknowledge the settlement demand, A considered appealing the decision. Additionally, in October last year, A filed criminal charges for fraud against Song Mino and the gallery.
Regarding this, Lee Byung-gu said, “This situation is extremely unfair.” He emphasized, “We intended to either provide the artwork or refund the payment, as per the court’s ruling. We even entrusted the artwork to our lawyer’s office to ensure immediate delivery. Despite this, A refused everything and continued to appeal. Now they are demanding a settlement. We even offered to cover their legal fees, but they rejected it. The settlement amount keeps increasing—from 40 million KRW to now over 50 million KRW. This raises suspicions that they are exploiting Song Mino’s celebrity status to demand such amounts.”
Lee stated that while mistakes were made during the artwork’s sale process, the gallery had made every effort to resolve the matter amicably with A. However, given that A took the issue to the media, making it a public controversy, the gallery has decided to counter with legal action.
Regarding rumors that the artwork in question had already been reserved by “a famous female singer close to Song Mino”, Lee refuted them, stating, “Neither the gallery nor Song Mino ever made such a claim.” He added, “A is only presenting their side of the story, and given the situation, we are considering suing for defamation and obstruction of business.”
