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for DWELL HERE APPLICATION. It is only accessible via this link.
Work-in-Progress in London
（10min.ver.）
（10min.ver.）
2024-
This footage captures the first Japanese knotweed specimen brought to the UK by Siebold in the 1850s, which is now stored at Kew Gardens. This specimen is the ancestor of nearly all Japanese knotweed currently found in the UK, and the existing plants are clones that share identical genetic material.
Installation view
“Some Sort of Tenderness*” Delfina Foundation, London
“Some Sort of Tenderness*” Delfina Foundation, London
This is an installation from the open studio at the Delfina Foundation. The footage is a work in progress, with plans to further develop it in future projects.
▲This is the most informative research paper in the literature review,
authored by J. P. Bailey and A. P. Conolly.
authored by J. P. Bailey and A. P. Conolly.
I was selected for the Delfina Foundation residency during the winter months of January to March, a time when, unfortunately, Japanese knotweed goes dormant. As a result, I wasn't able to conduct much outdoor fieldwork. However, this gave me the opportunity to interview researchers at Kew Gardens, delve into the academic papers they recommended, and review existing research. I encountered several intriguing studies on how Japanese knotweed expanded its range, including the development of new hybrid species through interactions with other varieties of knotweed that were introduced to Europe through different pathways. However, I noticed that much of the research focused on addressing Japanese knotweed as an “invasive species” from a purely scientific problem-solving perspective. I felt that understanding where this issue comes from and what the problem truly entails requires a more cross-disciplinary imagination.
▲Distribution map of Fallopia Japonica (Japanese knotweed) in Europe.
Adapted from "Fallopia Japonica (Houtt.) Ronse Decraene" by David J. Beerling,
John P. Bailey, and Ann P. Conolly.
Adapted from "Fallopia Japonica (Houtt.) Ronse Decraene" by David J. Beerling,
John P. Bailey, and Ann P. Conolly.
Research on Japanese Knotweed in Japan
I am currently conducting research on Japanese knotweed in Japan. In the country, Japanese knotweed is a native plant primarily found in mountainous areas. Due to the presence of natural predators and specific soil conditions, it does not stand out within the ecosystem. In some regions, it is consumed as a wild vegetable, but in most areas, this practice is uncommon. It has little interaction with human society, and it is not seen as either beneficial or harmful, instead being regarded as just another "weed." As a result, it has been studied far less in Japan compared to Western countries.
Through focusing my research on Japanese knotweed, I have come to realize that, beyond the world as we perceive it, numerous other agents are engaged in building complex social relationships.
Japanese knotweed is classified as a pioneer species, meaning it is one of the first plants to establish itself in exposed soil or disturbed land. It thrives in well-drained, sunny areas. In Japan, natural disasters like landslides or river floods provide it with new opportunities to spread. These conditions also align with disturbed lands where humans have cleared trees or dug up soil for construction. In fact, Japanese knotweed can often be found along paved mountain roads, at landslide construction sites, and around soil disposal areas. In this way, Japanese knotweed is always waiting for opportunities to move, often through various intermediaries, including humans.
In Japan, Japanese knotweed does not dominate the environment, thanks to factors like insects that feed exclusively on its leaves, soil conditions that prevent excessive growth, and the presence of other plants like kudzu that can overtake the height Japanese knotweed achieves with its branches. This dynamic resembles more of a sequence than a competition, where one species depends on the presence of others. These kinds of cyclical social relationships between multiple species seem to have little connection with the urban human societies that have developed since modern times.
Understanding how Japanese knotweed interacts with the world and exists within these multi-species social networks through the lens of art offers us a chance to reconsider the way our human society is structured around the concept of “value.”