21 Questions with… Model Soo Joo Park

May 1, 2015

From her cool, rebellious style to her utterly addictive Instagram feed, Soo Joo Park, who was actually scouted at a thrift store, has us hooked. And it is our delight to have the mega model serve as theFashionSpot’s guest editor for May. Here, Wilhelmina model and the face of L’Oréal Paris and Redken tackles our quickfire questions and her answers make us love her even more (if that’s possible!). After all, binge-watching Empire and searching the Internet for unicorn pics are our idea of a great time too.

The first thing I do in the morning is… rub my eyes, squeeze my cheeks, drink a cup of water.
The item of clothing I wear the most is… a red cropped turtleneck tank from TFC with a pair of boyfriend jeans from Rag & Bone.
I would never leave home without… my phone, ChapStick and L’Oréal Paris Magic Lumi Highlighter pen.
My guilty pleasure is… cheesecake and binge-watching Empire.
My beauty essentials include… Redken Extreme Length Sealer, Chanel Rouge Coco in Mademoiselle, L’Oréal Paris Infallible Eyeliner.
The last book I read was… Fire: From “A Journal of Love” by Anaïs Nin.
If my days had one extra hour I’d… probably squeeze in a workout session, but since I don’t have that extra hour…
The last thing I googled was… unicorn (for a picture to send my friend).
If I could meet anyone living or dead it would be… Marilyn Monroe.
When it comes to modeling, people don’t realize… that it’s a physically and mentally demanding occupation. You have to always look your best and inspire artists to create from seeing you. You don’t become a successful model by just being tall or good-looking.
My favorite snack is… avocado or Taleggio cheese on bread.
The one thing I splurge on is… good cocktails and spa treatments.
My favorite place to travel is… someplace warm. My most recent favorite was Tulum.
My most memorable modeling gig was… shooting The Little Black Jacket with Karl and Carine. I met one of my favorite actresses, Maggie Cheung, on the set and I was so starstruck.
If you looked at my desktop you’d see… a pile of furniture catalogs, my laptop and a half-drunk cup of cold coffee.
When I’m stressed I… need someone to talk to. It usually comforts me. Then I meditate.
On a typical Saturday night I… usually veg out on my couch or balcony.
My biggest style regret is… I have no regrets.
Something people don’t know about me is… I’ve never owned a pet in my life, but love cats!
I’d love to work with… Steven Meisel. David Lynch on a film.
The best advice I’ve ever received was… be direct. People can’t read your mind, and unless you make your thoughts heard, they won’t know how you feel and nothing will change.

Soo Joo can't help but break the mold. She redefines every notion of the typical, modern-day supermodel in her refusal to be typecast. She's used her photogenic personality, social media following, sartorial street style and demographic-straddling appeal to become nothing short of a budding icon. Soo Joo has worked with such industry heavyweights as Carine Roitfeld, Karl Lagerfeld and Tom Ford and appeared in magazines including Vogue Korea, Harper's Bazaar and V.

Born in Seoul, South Korea, she's a self-proclaimed 'archi-nerd' having studied architecture at the University of California at Berkeley. In high demand, Soo Joo is now based in New York and represented by Wilhelmina Models.

| The one thing I splurge on is good cocktails and spa treatments.