BEAuTIfuLLy Unsightly
THE Vine THAt ATe THE SOUth
THE Vine THAt ATe THE SOUth
Originally from East Asia, Kudzu was initially brought to the United States as an exotic ornamental garden plant. During the Dust Bowl it was pushed with evangelical fervor as the vine that would, “Save the South from washing into the ocean,” and planted prolifically on roadsides and fallow farm fields.
Since its introduction, the plant has become intertwined with southern life and identity. While areas of persistent spread are often highly visible from the roadside, the invasive characteristics of the plant are often overexaggerated. While climbing to access sunlight and smothering other species in the process, it provides cover for mammals and reptiles, and an attractive food source for herbivores.
INTerpreTIng THE KineTIc LANDscape
INTerpreTIng THE KineTIc LANDscape
The successional battleground became more personally impactful when the conflict was reduced to differences in textures and silhouettes in the morning fog. Within each scene are multiple instances of conflict and competition temporarily frozen in time.
AdapTIVE Reuse
AdapTIVE Reuse
I was struck by the visceral reaction I had to scenes of reoccupied human debris. I found myself contemplating the negative association I hold with human debris and the blurring delineation between the human and non-human.
At what point are our concerns valid rather than purely aesthetic? Does a spider care that it’s home is a steel pipe or an opioid pill bottle? Does it appreciate the sturdiness in wind? or the shelter from rain?
“AbANDonMENt”
“Abandonment”
I believe my sense of the concept of abandonment has been thoroughly shaken by our visit to the Mississippi River Basin Model in Clinton, Mississippi. Maybe they are unmaintained, but certainly not abandoned. Up until the 1990’s the only vegetation at the basin model was mowed grass. Fast forward 30 years and it is completely contained within a forest. Hardy plants push through cracks in the concrete slabs, wasps occupy the corners of buildings, and evidence of use litters the entire 200 acre site. Alognside abandonment by its previous owners is the seeming abandonment of judgement.
Reabsorption
Where the visual distinction between the perception of abandonment and the perception of reabsorption lies is fuzzy and unclear.Moreso than abandoned places, human intervention in a state of significant decay provided both feelings of hope and dread. From the chemical process of rusting, to the sheer force of vegetative growth, to the blended and regenerative processes of rot and decay,
