(Porcelain SIP)

Abstract

Ornamental plants have been continuously brought over to the United States from Eastern Asian countries for many decades on the sole purpose of aesthetic enhancement of landscapes and domestic spaces. People do not realize the negative impact that they have on the environment by introducing a non-native species into an ecosystem. Some of the harmful aspects of invasive plant species involves the takeover of a native area which encompasses the change of an ecosystem and the organisms that reside there. It can be detrimental to an ecosystem by making native plants or organisms extinct. The type of clay that was used, porcelain, was an important choice in the making of my project. Three of the top ornamental invasive plant species were used in the construction of these works of art. The use of pottery combined with hand building was united in order to make invasive species on pottery forms. A total of seven pieces were constructed for the final review. Of these, four were left unglazed to explore the delicacy of porcelain and naturalistic qualities of the invasive species, Oriental Bittersweet, Japanese Barberry, and Kudzu. Three pieces were glazed to exhibit the different qualities that glaze can have on a work, which involved using examples from Kudzu and Oriental Bittersweet. My intention is to make people think more about where plants have come from. These plants are botanical and exotic species that become dangerous commodities which draws a parallel between pottery aesthetics and decorative landscaping.