Wendell R. Wilson
Louisiana Folk Art Rooted in History, Memory, Culture, and Rural Life
Wendell R. Wilson is a Louisiana folk artist whose paintings preserve the stories, traditions, and memories of the people and places that shaped him.
A Southern University alumnus, Army veteran, and recognized Louisiana Master Folk Artist, Wendell creates work grounded in rural life, African American history, Southern culture, faith, family, struggle, survival, and nostalgia. His art reflects a world he knows personally — small towns, cotton fields, country roads, front porches, churches, schools, families, and the everyday moments that become history when someone takes the time to remember them.
Painting has been a lifelong passion for Wendell. It began in grade school, when teachers asked him to decorate bulletin boards. That early creative spark never left. Over time, it became a visual record of memory, culture, and experience.
“I’m kind of in the folk vein,” Wendell says. “I like to deal with history and a little nostalgia. I have a rural background. I grew up in a small town. I’ve picked cotton, chopped cotton, and experienced many of the things I paint. Now I’m trying to reflect. I’m staying in my roots.”
Wendell’s work has been featured in exhibits across Louisiana, including at the Multicultural Center of the South in Shreveport, the Carver Branch Library in Baton Rouge, and the Southern University Museum of Art Shreveport. His art has also been included in exhibits recognizing Louisiana artists’ responses to Hurricane Katrina, including the powerful works “My Babies Are Safe” and “Child, Our Homes Are Destroyed.”
His paintings are direct, expressive, and deeply personal — the kind of folk art that does not just decorate a wall, but tells a story.
Through the Wendell Wilson Folk Art Academy, Wendell also works to preserve and teach the history of folk art, helping others understand folk art as an expression of culture, heritage, lifestyle, surroundings, simplicity, imagination, and lived experience.
Today, Wendell’s collections include rural life paintings, Louisiana cultural works, historical pieces, botanicals, original art, giclée prints, and his popular Southern University JAGS Collection, featuring artwork celebrating the spirit and pride of Southern University. His JAGS Collection includes pieces such as “Jaguar On Top Of The World,” offered as a 24 x 36 giclée print.
“Hopefully, I have created something that someone will enjoy,” Wendell says.
Explore the Art of Wendell R. Wilson
Browse Wendell’s available artwork, featured collections, prints, originals, and the Southern University JAGS Collection.