Last year, as part of our residency program (in collaboration with Taipei Artist Village, the Munich Department of Culture, and Goethe Taipei), Bo-YI Wu won the call for applications in Taipei, thereby securing a three-month residency at Villa Waldberta and a solo exhibition at our gallery.
In “Accretion” (the gradual accumulation of matter), the artist covers the apartment with handmade paper made from the fibers of Japanese knotweed. The paper extends from the walls down to the floor and no longer serves merely as a picture surface, but becomes a walk-in spatial field, created through the layered accumulation of plant fibers. In this site-specific installation, Wu draws on the architectural features and the interplay of light and shadow within the Apartment der Kunst. By capturing these conditions at specific times of day, Bo-Yi Wu also incorporates time as a fourth dimension into his work in this exhibition.
The work explores the tension between the spread of plants across regions and human regulatory systems. Japanese knotweed was first introduced to Europe in the 19th century as an ornamental plant; in recent years, due to its rapid spread, it has been redefined as an invasive species requiring management and control. This change in status not only reflects the plant’s own spread but also demonstrates how humans, through classification and regulation, continue to shape the way we perceive and interact not only with plants but also, for example, with other people in our environment.
Using traditional papermaking techniques, the artist processes and reconstructs knotweed fibers, thereby transforming the plant’s original form. As the paper spreads throughout the exhibition space, the fibers gradually penetrate the room’s surface, seeking to challenge established perceptions of plants considered invasive.
Through this material translation, the work enables a new way of viewing and perceiving a plant that has long been subject to regulations, precautions, and fixed definitions. As a continuation of the artist’s ongoing plant-related research and practice in Taiwan, the UK, and Germany, it continues to explore the shifting relationships between culture, ecology, and systems of governance.
