Erik Wahl

Erik Wahl
Erik Wahl in 2013
Residence	San Diego
Nationality	American
Alma mater	University of San Diego
Occupation	Speaker, author, artist, entrepreneur
Spouse(s)	Tasha Wahl
Website	theartofvision.com

Erik C. Wahl is an American graffiti artist,speed-painter,author, motivational speaker and entrepreneur based in San Diego. He owns The Wahl Group, a consultancy firm, and has spoken at conventions by Microsoft, Disney, NBC and Honda. Wahl makes paintings of thinkers, leaders and cultural icons such as Michael Jordan, Steve Jobs, and Bono during his presentations.

In 2011, Wahl created a 10,000 square-foot Mona Lisa in a desert near Los Angeles. The following year, he was selected by TED as a speaker for the TED2012: Full Spectrum series. Wahl wrote the book Unthink: Rediscover Your Creative Genius in 2013.Unthink was named CEO Reads book of the year in 2013. In 2014, Wahl was a featured speaker at the World Entrepreneur Of The Year event hosted by Ernst & Young, as well as Entrepreneur's 2014 Growth Conference.

After graduating from University of San Diego with a bachelor's degree in business, Wahl became a partner at a corporate firm. He was there for eight years before losing his job during the dot-com bubble burst in the early 2000s. At the age of 30, Wahl decided to change his focus to art. He later founded his own company, The Wahl Group, with his wife Tasha Wahl.

Wahl began working as a motivational speaker and graffiti artist rather than returning to the corporate world. After a few years of painting and selling his work to buyers, Wahl decided to stop selling his art and instead only auction off his paintings for charities.