Fanja Bouts

Fanja Bouts is a visual artist who recently finished her MSc in Environmental Sciences at Wageningen University & Research (WUR), where her thesis mapped out arts-based research methods for more-than-human inquiry, examined through a Rhododendron bush in Park Sonsbeek, Arnhem (Bouts 2026). Her work often looks not only at more-than-human relations but also the socio-political causes and environmental consequences of a growth-based economy. Incorporating different media, her practice ranges from comic works to large-scale textile pieces and short films. For a recent edition of the Sonsbeek Biennale, she developed a complex work—combining stained-glass works, a series of deep-mapping sessions, and a small publication—that invited humans to experience and map out the park from different perspectives. As a member of the “Just Futures” research team, Fanja examines land-water relations through counter-cartography and deep mapping of the Twentekanaal and Aruban coastlines, looking into and showcasing untold stories while contemplating speculative futures in which these narratives unfold.