Actor Burt Young Opens NY Art Exhibit

Actor Burt Young, aka Rocky Balboa’s gruff brother-in-law Paulie, is showing his softer side in an art exhibit that opened Saturday in New York.

Young’s exhibit at Astor Place’s Jade Nectar Gallery includes 20 colorful and whimsical paintings he has created through years of artistry, the New York Post reported.

I’ve always painted, the native New Yorker told the newspaper. As a kid, I won some New York City art contests, but then life took over. But every woman I’ve ever been with ends up with her walls painted. I’ll do murals sometimes. I’ve been scolded for it.

Young, 65, who appears in more than 70 films, said color is the most important element to his art.

Sometimes I get ideas from a dream, he said. Or I just start mixing up color. The color and the shape, it’s almost like sculpting.

For those who are surprised to find out about his other talent, Young said for him, acting and painting go hand in hand.

Communication is communication, he said. Everything that’s alive wants to communicate. It’s about finding a way to open up yourself, your feelings.