Xandra van der Eijk is an artist and researcher whose work investigates how living and lively matter moves within planetary systems. Deeply informed by material flows that defy containment or control, long-term research projects have focussed on the ever shifting and networked ecologies of fluid environments. Central to their methodology is the concept of Materiality of Place—a term devised to describe how site-specific actors embody ecological, cultural, and political worlds and how these can be uncovered by engaging in artistic fieldwork, material experimentation and technological mediation.
As the founder of Ecology Futures at the Master Institute of Visual Cultures (Avans University of Applied Sciences), Xandra has played a pivotal role in shaping ecological art education in the Netherlands. The program integrates decolonial thinking, artistic-scientific methodologies and biotechnological approaches, fostering new ways of generating knowledge through practice-led inquiry.
Their work has been award-winning and exhibited internationally, including at the Biennale of Sydney, ZKM Centre for Art and Media Karlsruhe, and MUDAC Lausanne. Xandra maintains longstanding collaborations with institutions such as MU Hybrid Art House, the Bio Art & Design Award, the Embassy of the North Sea, and FIBER. When not at work, Xandra practices earth stewardship over a 240m plot of land.
