Invasive Species Behind the Notoriety: Multi-directional Narratives for Abundant Futures

This research-based curatorial project examines the historical trajectories of invasive species introduced to Asia as food commodities before and after World War II, including two video artworks by Chang En-Man. The study focuses on two cases: the American bullfrog (introduced to Korea in the 1970s) and the Giant African Land Snail (Achatina fulica, introduced to Taiwan in the 1930s). This comparative research investigates the ecological politics, moral implications, and sovereignty discourses surrounding non-human species reduced to food commodities. Through dialogue with Myungae Choi's Rewilding: Experiments for Nature Conservation in the Anthropocene at the KAIST Anthropocene Center, the study critically examines temporal dimensions within invasive species histories, questioning the constructed temporality that determines species as 'invasive' or 'native.'