Paul Cordes Wilm

Medium: Painting

Location: Charm

Paul Cordes Wilm is a Southern artist and musician, born and raised in Alabama. He currently lives in Birmingham, Alabama. Equally influenced by Andy Warhol and (Alabama folk artist) Mose Tolliver, thebright colors (a good-natured nod to the artist’s red/green colorblindness), satirical juxtapositions and sharp sense of humor all make Paul Cordes Wilm’s “Folk-Pop” artwork nearly iconic in the Magic City. Walk into any number of Birmingham, AL businesses and Wilm’s whimsical characters are waiting to greet you. Wilm also has many colorful murals hiding around the city. In 2015, he painted a life-size Vulcan statue entitled “Forging Ahead” which now permanently resides in front of the BJCC Arena. Wilm also created an eye-popping mural at the Birmingham Museum of Art entitled “Love Is Blind”. Paul is an adamant recycler, and as a result, all of his work is created using 90-100% recycled materials, from found wood to used house paint to recycled computer ink to junk mail. When he sells pieces, he lets people know these facts, hoping that they might realize that so many items we blindly throw into the garbage can actually be reused in another way.