Through a multidisciplinary practice that includes installation, performance, painting, printmaking, and public art, Wendy Sittner explores the interconnected cycles of decay, regeneration, and transformation. Inspired by lessons found in the natural world, her work examines how people interpret these processes—as evidence of resilience and renewal or as reminders of impermanence and loss.
Central to her practice is the reuse of discarded materials, which she transforms into new works that reflect the recurring patterns of both human experience and the broader ecosystem. By giving new life to what has been cast aside, Sittner highlights the continuous cycles of destruction and creation that shape our world. Her work invites viewers to consider their own role within these systems and to reflect on whether their actions contribute to growth or decline in themselves, their communities, and the shared environment inhabited by both animate and inanimate beings.
SELECT EXHIBITIONS
2020 DC Street Sticker Expo 5.0, The Fridge, Washington, DC. Curated by iwillnot.
2020 TED Talks TEDMed Conference, Boston, MA.
2019 Outsider Art Fair, New York, NY.
2019 United Slap Society, Propaganda Project, Besançon, France.
2019 Tribeca Art + Culture Night, New York, NY.
2018 Women Making History: Trailblazers in the Arts, Sciences, Innovation & Culture, Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum, Washington, DC. Artist Talk.
2018 Outsider Art Fair, New York, NY.
2018 Elixir: Artists Respond to Making and Healing, Joan Hisaoka Healing Arts Gallery, Washington, DC. Curated by Schroeder Cherry.
2018 What Feminism Looks Like: A Nasty Women Exhibition, Art Watch and DC Arts Center, Washington, DC.
2018 In Care of the White House, Montpellier Arts Center, Laurel, MD.
2018 Visualize Health Equity, National Academy of Medicine, Washington, DC. Catalog.
2017 Wish You Were Here, A.I.R Gallery, New York, NY.
2016 Light of Our Future, Art Impact USA, Children’s Hospital. Washington, DC. Catalog, Artist Talk.
2016 Alchemical Vessels, Joan Hisaoka Gallery, Washington, DC. Catalog.
2016 We The Explorers (Osiris-Rex Mission), NASA, Greenbelt, MD.
2015 All-Media Show, The Art League Gallery at The Torpedo Factory. Alexandria, VA. Juried by Liza Key Strelka of The Phillips Collection.
OTHER EXPERIENCE
2019 Coordinator, Kindness Rocks by Art Watch for “A Speak Easy Evening,” Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Washington, DC.
2019 Speaker, “Breaking Boundaries: Loving the Earth,” International Interior Design Association, Baltimore, MD.
2019 Speaker, “Upcycled Art: The Future of the Anacostia Envisioned,” Lotus and Water Lily Festival, Kenilworth Gardens, Washington, DC.
2019 Speaker, “Upcycled Art: The Future of the Anacostia Envisioned,” Urban Adventure Squad, DC Bilingual Public Charter School, Washington, DC.
2017 Visiting Artist, Richmond Juvenile Detention Center, Richmond, VA.
2016 Healing Art Workshop Leader, Children’s Hospital, Washington, DC.
2011-2019 Studio Manager, The Torpedo Factory, Alexandria, VA.
COLLECTIONS
Capitol Riverfront BID, Washington, DC
DC Department of Energy and Environment, Washington, DC
Library of Congress, Washington, DC
Martha’s Table, Washington, DC
Ocean Conservancy, Washington, DC
University of Massachusetts, North Dartmouth, MA
CAMPAIGNS
2019 Opiate Addiction Prevention, Arlington Addiction Recovery Initiative, Arlington, VA.
2019 Mental Health Awareness, Department of Human Services, Arlington, VA.
2019 Suicide Prevention, Department of Human Services, Arlington, VA.
2018 National Suicide Prevention Hotline, The National Center for Mental Illness, Mexico.
2018 Mental Health Awareness, Centro Cultural La Galería—Kikimundo, Chiapas, Mexico.
2018 National Call for Moral Revival, California Poor People’s Campaign, CA.
COMMISSIONS
2024 "(Re)Purposed Petals," Capitol Riverfront BID for the National Cherry Blossom Festival, Washington, DC.
2023 "Sea Foam,” Ocean Conservancy, Washington, DC.
2019 “The Future of the Anacostia Envisioned,” Anacostia Watershed Society and DC Department of Energy and Environment, Washington, DC.
PERFORMANCE AND PUBLIC ART
2024 "Northern Bobwhite" Lamppost Installation, Capitol Hill Arts Workshop in partnership with Cleveland Park & Woodley Park Main Street with support from DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, Washington, DC.
2022 “Blossoming Spring Wear” Interactive Installation, National Cherry Blossom Festival, Washington, DC.
2021 “Warming Waters” Film Documentary by Artists Monica Jahan Bose and Robin Bell with funding from the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, Washington, DC.
2021 “Storytelling With Saris” Installation and Video Projection with Artists Monica Jahan Bose and Robin Bell, Washington, DC.
2021 “Together” Mural, assisted Artists Lisa Marie Thalhammer, Maggie O’Neill, and Nia Keturah with installing a mural with funding by the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities and Shaw Main Streets, Washington, DC.
2020 “P.O.W.” Bullet-Melting Performance with Artist Stephanie Mercedes, Instagram Live.
2019 “Gallery Experience: Artists and Climate Change” Performance with Artist Katie Kehoe, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington, DC.
2019 “The Future of the Anacostia Envisioned” Installation, National Cherry Blossom Festival and Anacostia River Festival, Washington, DC.
2019 Opiate Addiction Prevention Campaign interior placards and exterior side panels installed on Metro buses and Arlington Transit buses, Arlington Addiction Recovery Initiative, Arlington, VA.
2019 “Harbinger” Site-Specific Performance with Artist Katie Kehoe at the Tidal Basin. Arlington Arts Center and VCU Arts, Washington, DC
2019 Live Wheatpaste Installation, International Motorcycle Show, New York, NY.
2019 Mental Health Awareness Campaign, Department of Human Services, Arlington, VA.
2019 Suicide Prevention Campaign, Department of Human Services, Arlington, VA.
2019 “The Healing Garden” Installation, Department of Human Services, Arlington, VA.
2018 National Suicide Prevention Hotline Poster, The National Center for Mental Illness, Mexico
2018 Mental Health Awareness Poster, Centro Cultural La Galería—Kikimundo, Chiapas, Mexico.
2018 National Call for Moral Revival Campaign, California Poor People’s Campaign, California.
2018 Memorial Day Guerrilla Arts Performance at the White House, Art Watch, Washington, DC.
2018 “Love Grows Here” Mural, Anacostia Watershed Society, Washington, DC.
2017 Women’s March Official Parachutes, assisted Artists Kate DeCiccio and Leslie Stem in executing their designs for the official parachutes of The Women’s March on Washington, Washington, DC.
2017 “LOVE” Mural, assisted Artist Lisa Marie Thalhammer in installing a mural in The DC Alley Museum with funding by the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, Blagden Alley, Washington, DC.
2017 “Wishing Wall,” National Academy of Medicine, Washington, DC.
2016 Torpedo Factory Ambassador, SHELDON FOR DC Campaign Performance, Washington, DC.
2015 “A Bird in the Hand,” assisted Artist Patrick Dougherty in constructing a site-specific installation with funding from the National Endowment of the Arts, Tephra Institute of Contemporary Art, Reston, VA.
2015 “Cherry Blossoms,” streetlight banner, Manassas, VA.
2014 “Paper Trail” Performance, Videographer and Assistant to Artist Stephanie Beck and dancers of Racoco Productions during Bushwick Open Studios, Brooklyn, NY.