William Morris, Invasive Species and ideolised landscapes

Following on from my previous blog entry I have been playing around with and creating additional experimental work using invasive species as a subject matter. An area I feel that has been particularly interesting and has come out of my practice to date has been the conflict and fallout between the attitudes, ideas and knowledge around invasive species when they were first introduced due to their ornamental and decorative qualities and their subsequent fall from grace to being regarded as an extremely costly pest, nuisance and hazard to the environment. I began to think about additional ways in which it would be possible to try and combine these two sets of ideals. 

To start I researched prominent Victorian  artists and designers who helped to define the 19th Century. William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) is recognised as one of the most significant cultural figures of Victorian Britain. Associated with the English Arts and Crafts Movement, he was a major contributor to the revival of traditional textile arts and methods of production in Britain. 

William Morris, Sunflower Wallpaper

William Morris, Oak leaf Wallpaper

'In choosing natural forms be rather shy of certain very obvious decorative ones, eg bindweed, passion-flower and the poorer forms of ivy, used without the natural copiousness. I should call these trouble savers and warn you of them....we have had them used so cheaply this long while we are sick of them ' William Morris 'Making the best of it'

Morris used nature as his prominent inspiration. His sources were plants themselves, observed in his gardens or on country walks, and also images of plants in 16th-century woodcuts, illuminated manuscripts, tapestries and other textiles incorporating floral imagery. His designs were not to be literal transcriptions of natural forms but subtle stylized evocations. Of the nearly 600 designs which are attributed to him there are very few which do not feature flowers, leaves, trees or plants.

William Morris, B + W thistle wallpaper

William Morris, Borage Ceiling Paper

Using Morris's floral designs as a starting point I wondered what the result would be by attempting to combine them with some of the dystopic qualities contained within the invasive species collages I had been creating and experimenting with earlier in this unit. 

I decided that it would be interesting to retain the circular format of the collages and began by placing some of the patterns from the Morris designs on top of sections of the collages by using Adobe Photoshop and effectively lifting the colours, textures and patterns from the collage in order to create a new composition. I have posted some of the results below:

 

 

I think that the results from these four pieces are mixed. Although they have retained the decorative elements which are inherent within the William Morris designs I am not sure whether they contain within them the dystopic qualities that I was hoping to achieve by using the subject matter from invasive species collages. It is possible to make out some of the elements from the compositions however much of the subject matter appears lost and instead it reads as just colour and pattern. 

A further idea that I have experimented with for my recent practice relates to the landscape. Having previously created paintings of places using found images which I collaged together in order to create new landscapes, I began to experiment with images of idealized landscapes that I juxtaposed with images of invasive species. Continuing with the theme of the English landscape I began by considering idealized landscapes within the United Kingdom.  In order to come up with some imagery I began by using a google search in order to generate some results. The website global grasshopper includes a link to the top ten most beautiful places to visit in the UK: http://www.globalgrasshopper.com/destinations/uk/10-of-the-most-beautiful-places-to-visit-in-the-uk/  although subjective in their nature as to what actually constitutes the most beautiful landscapes in Great Britain I felt that this could be a good place to start. The following four landscapes were the ones that I chose to use as a starting point for my experimentation:

Llanberis Pass, North Wales

Glen Nevis, Scotland

The Jurassic Coast, East Devon to Dorset

Cambridge, Cambridgeshire

Below are the four images after I have cut up the landscapes and added in the imagery of the invasive species, in order to further break up the surface of the collage. I was much more pleased with the results achieved via this process and felt that they had much more of a dystopic feel to them. The most effective in my mind being the one taken using the Jurassic Coast as a subject and Llanberis Pass North Wales.  Some of the ink nozzles on my printer had become partially blocked meaning that the colours of the print out from the invasive species collages had begun to distort and change which helped to add to heightened sense of discordance and unease, while the fragmented juxtaposed sections of the composition complete with the images of the people added to the scene and created an even greater sense of tension and uneasiness.

The Jurassic Coast, East Devon to Dorset plus invasive species collage.

Cambridge, Cambridgeshire plus invasive species collage.

Glen Nevis Scotland plus invasive species collage.

Llanberis Pass, North Wales plus invasive species collage.

New Collages and Reflections on Research and Practice so far

I think it is worth noting that green issues have not been a leading force in my research into non-native species, although these are pertinent in light of current events relating to the environment. I have conducted my research to date in a scientific and rational fashion, leading to some interesting and thought provoking results but don’t wish for it to become an overbearing feature and for the work to lose its spontaneity or to become overly methodical and planned.

In a previous blog I discussed how I had started to experiment with collage creating two giant Hogweed collages from found images, one by hand and the other using Adobe Photoshop. I felt the handmade one to be more effective due to its handcrafted, less seamless and more chaotic juxtaposition. I chose a circular rather than rectangle or square composition to frame the work and to strike a balance with the content, which was chaotic, busy and full of contrasting elements.

Giant Hogweed Collage, created using found images, with paper and glue.

I decided to stick with this circular format, as I felt it was particularly effective. I created an additional collage using found images of Himalayan Balsam and another using found images of Japanese knotweed. In both although retaining the circular format I attempted to experiment and break up the composition. In the Balsam Collage I used images of clumps of Balsam for the bottom left area while I interspersed close up images of Balsam flowers with felt tip pen to create the top right of the composition which I felt created more of a hallucinatory and fragmented sense. I included figures in both the Hogweed and Knotweed collages but decided not to include any figures in the Balsam collage.

Himalayan Balsam Collage, created using found images with paper and glue.

Within the Japanese Knotweed collage I experimented with the composition by using felt tip pen as well as burning the paper in order to change the appearance of the collage by breaking up and fragmenting the surface further. I felt that the burned areas added another dimension to the piece as they changed the feel of the whole surface by creating more of a used and destructive feel.

Japanese Knotweed Collage, created using found images with paper and glue.

Detail from Japanese Knotweed Collage, showing areas that have been burnt.

I created one additional collage using images of Muntjac Deer. I initially started by again using a circular composition as a starting point however as I made progress I decided it would be interesting to see what happened if I placed the imagery outside of the circular composition. I also experimented with the effect of using deer that were dead, and images of the deer that were having sex to see if this added or detracted from the end result. The effect of the deer breaking out of the bottom of the composition not only breaks up the seemingly perfect circle but creates an impression of ejection, escape or expulsion.

Muntjac Deer Collage, created using found images, paper and glue.

One of the issues that I have found particularly pertinent surrounding my research into invasive species is the apparent conflict between 19^th century knowledge and attitudes versus contemporary knowledge and the manner in which it has changed. 

Many of the species were initially introduced into the UK as ornamental in order to enhance one's back garden before they escaped and evolved into something which was a pest, nuisance and incredibly costly; inhabiting disregarded places, borderlands and peripheries. It implies a fracturing of knowledge and highlights the change in attitudes between then and now. When I made my trip to the Wensum Valley in order to observe the area being cleared of Himalayan Balsam I had the opportunity to capture some footage of the process, which involved a contractor using a strimmer in order to clear the area. 

I considered various ways in which it would be possible to capture and contrast this change in attitude and fracturing of knowledge and decided it would be interesting to juxtapose some footage of the Himalayan Balsam being cleared with a soundtrack which consisted of music from the Victorian era when the species was first introduced. After some research I discovered that a popular leading English Victorian pianist and composer Sydney Smith had been born in the same year that the Balsam was first introduced into the country in 1839. I created a video of the Balsam being cleared and used one of his popular piano scores the Fairy Queen as a soundtrack.

Norfolk Non Native Species Initiative and a visit to the Wensum Valley.

Continuing with my interest in Non-Native Species I contacted the NNNSI (Norfolk Non Native Species Initiative) and arranged to meet a member of the team and a contractor who were clearing a site which was situated on private land in the Wensum Valley close to Lenwade that had been overrun and was being cleared of Himalayan Balsam. As part of my research I spoke to Katy Owens who works for the NNNSI, about the work of the organisation including the projects, initiatives and species which are particularly problematic in Norfolk. Below is a copy of the interview which I documented:

A photograph of a contractor clearing Himalayan Balsam from the Wensum Valley close to Lenwade

R: Could you tell me a little bit about the NNNSI.

K: To keep an eye on non native species in Norfolk, only a few of which go on to be invasive. Generally the invasive species have no natural predators in the UK. Very often the Victorians introduced them in the 19^th century. It was not only plants that were a problem but also animals such as, Muntjac Deer and Chinese Water Deer.

R: Once introduced into the UK and taken out of their natural habitat do they spread like wildfire?

K: If they find a habitat that suits them they will spread to the detriment of the other species in that area. Often they form monocultures; they change the structure and function of the ecosystem. Himalayan Balsam can cause the soil to become very loose, once they die back in the winter then there may be a lot of erosion as their roots are no longer holding the soil together. Dense coverage can stop light getting to the species at the bottom, this in turn may block out all of the ground vegetation, which would normally exist close to the earth. They will also suck out all the nutrients from the earth meaning there are none left for the native species.

A photograph of a patch of Himalayan Balsam from the Wensum Valley Site.

  

R: Aren’t Himalayan Balsam flowers really popular for bees?

K: Yes, if another plant relies on bees for pollination then that can also be a problem. There is no way of eradicating the species however with areas like the Wensum Valley, which is an SSSI (Site Of Special Scientific Interest) there is money to try and control the issue. There is three years worth of funding, to deal with the problem, which hopefully will help to ease it by the third year.

R: Which is the worst of the invasive species in Norfolk in particular?

K: Himalayan Balsam is generally considered to be a big problem in Norfolk. Japanese Knotweed is a big problem on Brownfield Sites, abandoned sites or railway sidings. Once it becomes established on these areas where there is nobody in charge of keeping it in check it can spread very severely. Japanese Knotweed is particularly bad as there is no way to effectively treat it. The best way is to inject it with herbicide at the root and let it die off. If it is cut down it will re-grow, or if some root material is left in the ground it will re-grow. Once is has been cut down it is classified as practically hazardous waste. It has to be disposed of using an environmentally certified waste-site as it is so invasive.

R: I read that if it is found on your property it is so destructive that you may not be able to get a mortgage as it can grow through bricks and concrete!

K: Possibly a bit of an exaggeration. One of the problems is that less scrupulous developers have developed Brownfield sites without eradicating or clearing it and have built over the top meaning that knotweed may grow up through the foundations. Lots of money was spent on the Olympic Site in Stratford.

R: I think I read it was £70million?

K: Something like that, unexploded bombs were easy to deal with but Japanse Knotweed was a real problem. We do get issues with Knotweed but the problem is if we don’t have any funding for it on private land there is nothing we can do about it. Currently we are on private land but we have the landowners permission to deal with it plus private money to pull it out for free, as this is part of the Wensum valley and an SSSI.

R: You mentioned Muntjac Deer, are they part of the eradication scheme as well?

K: Yes, we had a group of Belgium stakeholders who came over as they started to have a Muntjac population appearing in Belgium. They are now in a position we were in 40 years ago so they came over to see what they could be doing differently to us to stop the deer from taking hold. Mainly they are found out towards Thetford Forest Way, particularly in ancient woodlands, which is where they cause most of the problems.

R: What do they do in particular?

K: In the same fashion as all invasive species they start to change the ecosystem in which they inhabit, this affects its structure and therefore its function. In the case of Muntjac Deer they nibble all of the new shoots so they clear the ground of cover, which the native species need in order to survive. They eat all the crops and breed prolifically being able to reproduce every 9 months. They are also very difficult to track down as they are very secretive and stay hidden.

R: How are they kept in check?

K: licensed gamekeepers employed by the forestry commission shoot them to keep them in check often. Farms with woods are generally a big problem as the Muntjac live in very small areas with dense cover. This is particularly an issue in Norfolk as there are a lot of these areas. Particularly areas where pheasants are kept are a problem as these condition suit the Muntjac really well as they are often wooded areas with dense cover.

Himalayan Balsam was originally introduced due to its ornamental qualities.

 R: There is a certain irony that these species were introduced as ornamental. Is that the case with a lot of them?

K: The Victorians introduced a lot of them and usually they have been introduced as an ornamental species or for fur farming, in the case of Mink, which are also a problem in Norfolk as they eat water voles, which are rare and also eat Crayfish.

R: isn’t there a problem with Crayfish as well?

K: Yes most of the native crayfish have been wiped out by the non-native crayfish. The non-native signal crayfish carry something called crayfish plague, which our native crayfish are susceptible to.

R: Is the problem of non-native species getting worse? Or was there a big boom in the last ten years or so?

K: It’s hard to say, a lot of this has been going on for a long time. It’s ongoing, different issues come in and out of fashion. Ecologically it has been a problem for sometime, the problem is usually addressed when it becomes an economic issue and therefore money is provided to deal with it.

R: Is that what is happening at the moment?

K: With some species yes, particularly the Muntjac Deer due to the crop devastation it had become a big problem for farmers and is now costing a huge amount of money. In order to control invasive species the government is starting to put new legislation in place to have a better management of species between countries. One of the big things at the moment is ballast water. Huge container ships travelling between continents have to take on ballast water in order to adjust their height in the water to load and offload cargo. For example a ship may take on water in Japan and release it in Harwich, Chinese Mitten crab are a particular species which have arrived here, possibly as a result of the movement of ballast water. They can live in salt and freshwater, making them particularly hardy. One of the problems is that they live in little holes in riverbanks and estuaries, which as a result can become destabilized and fall in. However it is very hard to prove, as it is particularly ephemeral and unless there is a particular release date of the ballast recorded it is really hard to prove anything. The scale of global movement these days is a big problem, there are so many people moving across the world. Things come in and go out of the country on a massive scale.

R: At this particular moment in time what are the worst non-native species that are a problem in Norfolk!

K: Muntjac Deer, Himalayan Balsam, Japanese Knotweed, Giant Hogweed and Killer shrimp in the broads are all a big problem. The Broads have a very unique ecology and are therefore especially easily affected. The Broads also have heritage status so it means the problem will get more attention. We have just finished writing a book for kids about killer shrimp. The non-native mink are also a problem, there is a way of observing whether they are present using a little tunnel with a pad in it which is made from moist clay able to soak up water. The mink will leave imprints in it if it runs through. It is therefore possible to distinguish between whether it was an otter or mink that ran through. If it is a mink it is possible to set a cage in order to catch it.

R: where could I go in order to see some good examples of these species?

K: Sheringham Park is a great place to go to see rhododendron Ponticum.  Here in the Wensum Valley is a good place to see a proliferation of Balsam. Knotweed can be found at Whittlingham Broad particularly where the railway goes by and also at Thorpe St Andrew on the island although it is impossible to go out without a boat. Muntjac are everywhere around Thetford forest, they often jump out in front of your car and they also make a barking noise like a dog. Giant Hogweed may be found on certain stretches of Marriott’s way in the vegetation along the sides. It can also be found at Lynford Hall where it is also a big problem. Killer shrimp can be found in the broads. Crayfish may be found in the river at Swanton Morley, they can be caught from the river using bacon attached to fishing line. The native ones have white claws and it is an offence to catch them.

R: Katy thanks so much for speaking to me and showing me this eradication site it has been a really big help for my research.

 

A path cleared through a proliferation of Himalayan Balsam as part of the eradication scheme in the Wensum Valley

 

Work in Progress.

Pitt Street, Norwich, looking towards Sovereign House

My investigations into invasive species lead me to photograph this fenced off mound of earth situated in front of the now disused building Sovereign House on Pitt Street, Norwich. Investigation revealed it had been treated last year for the removal of Japanese Knotweed my source being the online Minutes of a public meeting (ACT) held on 18 September 2013 at St Augustine’s Hall, Norwich:

‘Japanese knotweed- a sign in Pitt Street noted that the earth mound area behind fencing was being treated to eradicate Japanese knotweed.’

I could find no evidence of the sign or the knotweed however I particularly liked this image due to the atmosphere of dilapidation and the parallels existing between the building and the Knotweed. Both formerly occupied an elevated status before falling from favour becoming an eyesore and nuisance accompanied by the threat of eradication. The raised mound of earth to my mind had the feel of a mass burial site while the fencing around it gives it a forbiding and slightly menacing feel enhanced by the austere concrete and glass office block in the background and the feeling of dilapidation.

Sovereign House was once described as one of the best Modernist buildings in Norwich and reflects an interesting period of English architecture, the Brutalist movement, spawning many buildings now seen as masterpieces. The building has lain empty since 1996 and due to the ravages of time and nature has slipped into a state of disrepair and dilapidation. It has since been earmarked for demolition as part of a scheme to gentrify and redevelop the surrounding area of Anglia Square.

In order to create this image which was not possible to capture in one shot I took a series of over 30 photographs of the front of the building and mound from the opposite side of the road which I was then able to stitch together using the photomerge  filter on Adobe Photoshop, which aligns and fits them together according to their appropriate place in the composition.

An artist whose paintings have often depicted wastelands, nature and urban decay are those of George Shaw. His subject being the Tile Hill district of suburban Coventry where he was born and raised. Influenced in part by a neo-romantic cause between surrealism and the exploration of British subject matter. Shaw’s art lends an identity to the seemingly anonymous and unregarded landscape.

 George Shaw, The Age of Bullshit, Humbrol Enamel on Board, 2010

George Shaw,  The End of Time, Humbrol Enamel on Board, 2008-09

Landscape artists once sought the sublime through the rendering of pastoral scenes, but Shaw, in common with many contemporary photographers, as well as English painters, records the mundane, the everyday and the overlooked. In doing so, he somehow renders the everyday mysterious.

I had previously created a series of drawings inspired by 1960s style architecture although not explicitly related to urban decay or invasive species. Both of these drawings were made using flats situated on the towpath between Hammersmith and Fulham in London as a reference point.

Richard Wade, Flat Expanse, Crayon and Ink on paper, 2010

In choosing these areas as subject matter I was drawn to the fact that both sets of flats had an unwelcoming almost un lived in feel to them partly due to the lack of any human presence and also on account of the brutalist style concrete apartment blocks. I attempted to add to this brooding presence in Riverside by removing all colour from the composition using only black pen to record the scene.

Richard Wade, Riverside, Ink on Paper, 2010

In the book Edgelands, Journeys into England’s True Wilderness, Paul Farley and Michael Symmons Roberts reference both ruins and wastelands as areas that exist in a hiatus between the edge of one industrial area and potential future developments.

‘They become non-places, an impossible designation of space as terra nullius, suggesting they are spaces of and for nothing…. they have been bypassed by the flows of money, energy, people and traffic within which they were once enfolded.’

At this stage in my investigation I am unwilling to commit to a painting or finished piece of work, wishing to continue to experiment with ideas that are relatively quick and easy to execute, although I am drawn to the dystopic qualities and sense of abandonment and detachment exemplified by the photograph of the fenced off Pitt Street mound of earth and the brooding backdrop of Sovereign House.

I have been experimenting with collage as a way of continuing my investigation into invasive species via a relatively quick and experimental medium. So far I have attempted two one which I created using photoshop and another which I created using cut up and torn images which I had stuck on top of one another in order to arrive at a final image. 

Richard Wade, Giant Hogweed Collage created using Adobe Photoshop    

As part of my investigation I have contacted NNNSI (Norfolk Non-Native Species Initiative) in order to find out the location of invasive species in Norfolk and have arranged to go and witness the removal of Himalayan Balsam from Marriot’s Way at the start of next week as well as the location of a proliferation of Giant Hogweed which I intend on investigating over the weekend.

The two giant hogweed collages I have been experimenting with were both created using found images from a google search, which in the case of the second collage were printed, cut up and stuck together by hand. Despite using very similar subject matter and images I feel that I have achieved quite different results. Consisting of over twenty separate images the photoshop version at first glance looks although it could have been taken from just one photograph.

Richard Wade, Giant Hogweed Collage created using found images, scissors and glue   

The hand made version has much more of a handcrafted and experimental feel about it, this is partly down to the effect of the different colours including the black and white imagery and the overlapping nature of the images. Whilst printing the cyan and yellow cartridges were running out on my printer and as a result the images came out pink, which I chose to include as I felt that it added to the piece by creating more of a disjointed feel.