Born in Denver in 1959, Wenzel lived in Colorado, California and Alaska as a youth, then returned to California for his postgraduate education.
At the University of California at Berkeley, he pursued sculpture and painting, studying and working as a teaching assistant with the renowned abstract
expressionist sculptor, Peter Voulkos.
He also studied drawing and painting with Elmer Bischoff and Joan Brown, both expressionist painters identified with the Bay Area figurative movement.
In 1981, Wenzel earned a Master of Arts degree and two years later a Master of Fine Arts degree from UC Berkeley.
He went on to teach pottery and ceramic sculpture at various arts institutions in the bay area.
Upon returning to Denver 1989 Wenzel began working in large-scale paintings using mixed materials on paper and wood. His work is exhibited and collected nationally.
