Knotweed Project
Team: Christine Brill, Reiko Goto & Noel Hefele
Date: 2004
Funder: Sprout Fund
In the summer of 2004, the Knotweed Project, a collaboration between the GroundZero Action Network and 3 Rivers 2nd Nature presented an art exhibit entitled “Japanese Knotweed at the Skinny Building” in the heart of downtown Pittsburgh. The upper stories of the building displayed potted Japanese Knotweed (Polygonum cuspidatum) transforming the Skinny Building into a greenhouse.
Additional public components of the project included: a Knotweed Harvest and Re-Potting, a Knotweed Tasting, a Boat Ride and Rover Dialogue, a Closing Event at which Knotweed Instruments were performed and Knotweed paper was made, and a web site.
Japanese Knotweed is considered an invasive plant species. Originally introduced to the United States from Asia as an ornamental landscaping species, Knotweed has aggressively spread throughout the northeaster United States and its local prominence threatens the habitat of plant and animal communities.
Knotweed may be a permanent part of Western PA’s natural environment. What are people’s views of the plant and what might be done about it? Through art, this project educates about bio-diversity and the impact of Japanese Knotweed on our region, and generate free discussion and mutual respect about Pittsburgh’s diverse ecosystem and environmental culture.
