THE SECRETARY OF STATE... (THE BUTTERFLY PIECE), 2023
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1. Ceramics
2. Flora
3. Fauna
4. Behind the scenes
1. Ceramics
The brightly colored butterfly motif on this ceramic is known as the “Hundred Butterflies”.
PlateMade in China, 1875–1890
Made of Hard-Paste Porcelain
Diam. 9.5”
Gift of Mary Johnson, R1994.9.3
2. Flora
Kudzu (Pueraria montana), originally from East Asia, is now famous in the United States as an invasive non-native plant that overwhelms Southern U.S. landscapes. In its native range in Asia, kudzu had numerous uses historically: for culinary uses as a thickener in jellies and desserts, for medicinal use, for basketweaving and fiber uses. These practices were not transplanted along with kudzu when it was introduced to the U.S. in the late 1800s and widely pushed for to reverse soil erosion caused by the Dust Bowl in the 1930s by Congress and the Soil Conservation Service.
English ivy (Hedera helix), originally from Europe and western Asia, is an invasive non-native plant in the U.S. (it is also considered invasive in many other countries, including Australia, Canada, and New Zealand). It can easily choke out plants and cause damage to structures. Ivy, however, has strong cultural significances to Western European cultures, and was introduced to the U.S. by European colonists in the early 1700s.
Both plants—one from Asia and one from Europe—are woven through this piece as a commentary on the multiplicity of American immigrant experiences.
3. Fauna
The insects in this piece, listed below, come from North America and Asia: those native to North America were collected (already dead) and donated by community members in Lexington specifically for this project.- Yellow butterfly (goneopteryx farinosa): Eurasia (sourced from China)
- Lesser purple emperor butterfly (apatura ilia): Eurasia (sourced from China)
- Blue buckeye butterfly (junonia orithya): Africa, south/southeast Asia, Australia (sourced from Japan)
- Leaf mimic butterfly (kallima inachis): tropical Asia (sourced from China)
- China nawab butterfly (polyura narcaea): Eurasia, Indomalayan (sourced from China)
- Blue purple butterfly (udara dilecta): Asia (sourced from China)
- Ailanthus silkmoth (samia cynthia): Asia (sourced from China)
- Blue white butterfly (mimathyma schrenckii): Asia (sourced from China)
- Luna moth (actias luna): North America (sourced from Lexington)
- Eastern tiger swallowtail (pailio glaucus): eastern North America (sourced from Lexington)
- Large yellow underwing moth (noctua pronuba): Eurasia (sourced from Lexington)
- Spicebush swallowtail (papilio troilus): North America (sourced from Lexington)
- Eastern spotted-winged antlion (dendroleon obsoletus): southeastern United States (sourced from Lexington)
4. Behind the scenes
Pictured to left: preparing donated butterflies for their moment on set.
Many of the butterflies (and even the English ivy structure) in The Secretary of State... were donated by members of the W&L and Lexington communities for our artist in residence’s project. Thank you to everyone who helped to find and collect dead bugs for us!
Many of the butterflies (and even the English ivy structure) in The Secretary of State... were donated by members of the W&L and Lexington communities for our artist in residence’s project. Thank you to everyone who helped to find and collect dead bugs for us!
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