Wendelien Bakker is from the Netherlands and Ōtautahi, currently residing in Tāmaki Makaurau. Her practice is project-based and conceptually driven, navigated through a DIY approach and a strong reliance on the individual and the environment. This self-reliance adds mentally and physically performative elements to otherwise largely research-based projects.

Past projects include gold panning for three weeks in Central Otago, digging a small pool in her backyard, creating holes in water, and sweeping waves back into the sea. Sustainability plays a large role in Wendelien’s work, even pondering the sustainability of creative careers in a social system geared towards financial value. She often reuses or recycles materials in her work, while exploring the boundaries of physical limitations.

Wendelien holds a BFA from the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague, and a MFA from Elam School of Fine Arts in Auckland. She was awarded a fellowship at the British School in Rome by the Wallace Art trust in 2020, which she was completing when the pandemic hit. She also works as an art handler at Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki and is investigating spaces and living as she builds her own small house in Okuti Valley.