Kenzie Wells (they/them) is a mixed-media artist, educator, and curator based in Columbia, MO. Their work explores narratives of environmental and queer resilience found in the mid-south and southeast regions of the U.S, commenting on how political forces inhibiting LGBTQIA+ rights coincide with societal shifts toward ecocide. Wells has attended residencies and workshops at the Wassaic Project Artist Residency, Oxbow School of Art and Artists’ Residency, and Penland School of Craft. They have exhibited nationally in galleries, art fairs, and museums including: SPRING/BREAK Art Show, New York, MoCA Tucson, The University of Arizona Museum of Art, and Torrance Art Museum, CA. Originally from Knoxville, TN, Wells received their BFA in 2015 from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and MFA in 2020 from the University of Arizona in Tucson. Wells currently serves as a Visiting Assistant Professor of Sculpture at the University of Missouri, co-director and member of stop-gap projects, an artist-run project space in downtown Columbia, MO, and is a member of the Mid-South Sculpture Alliance. Recent and upcoming exhibitions and conferences include Of the Land: Knauber, Potts, and Wells, Lightwell Gallery, Norman, OK, MSA Select, Vulcan Materials Gallery, Birmingham, AL, juried by Vanessa German, and MDW 2024 Summit with stop-gap projects, Charlotte Street Foundation, Kansas City, MO.