What happens to the objects we throw away?
In a new exhibit at Delray’s Old School Square, artists examine that question while creating works that reclaim the forgotten, resurrect the discarded and transform waste into something both beautiful and meaningful, inviting viewers to ponder the afterlives of the items we discard.
Running through Sunday, Sept. 27, at the Cornell Museum of Art, Persistence of Matter: Transforming Discarded Materials into Art that Inspires and Provokes highlights works by artists who transform discarded materials into new works of art and reexamine notions of recycling, reusing and reimagining once discarded items.
“Persistence of Matter is about looking again — at materials, objects and even ourselves,” say co chairs Mavis Benson and Pam Lambie. The exhibition asks people to slow down and reconsider what we throw away — physically, emotionally and culturally.
“Things that are overlooked or discarded still carry history, beauty and possibility,” they say. “Through the vision of these artists, what was once forgotten becomes unforgettable.”
Through sculpture, installations and mixed media works created from reclaimed objects, the artists elevate these objects and reveal hidden histories while challenging viewers to reconsider consumption, waste and sustainability.
One of the artists is Delray Beach-based sculptor Mike Silverman, 69, known for his reflective wall sculptures created with reclaimed hard drive platters and motherboards.
His work embodies connections between technology, humanity and art, exploring themes of our inner world and relationships, while reusing discarded elements.
“Upcycled art alone won’t solve the global waste crisis; its power lies in raising awareness,” says Silverman. “By utilizing discarded materials, I reveal beauty in the overlooked and encourage others to try creative reuse themselves.”
The former management consultant and self-taught artist says that e-waste resonates with him the most.
“Metaphorically, it speaks to the pervasive and invasive role that technology plays in our modern lives,” he says. “I transform components that are inherently cold and sterile into something organic, beautiful and deeply human.”
Silverman developed his own fabrication techniques — everything from scroll saw fretwork to the engineering required to reshape computer components and began playing with the reflectivity of the pieces. In re-contextualizing these materials, he wants to remind us not to lose sight of the human spirit as the digital era increasingly defines and controls us. Influenced by sculptors Henry Moore and Constantin Brancusi, Silverman, who began as a stone carver, considers himself a conceptual artist and finds inspiration in dreams or meditation.
Five of his sculptures are displayed, including Aperture of Peace, Self-Reflection and Glimmer of Consciousness, from his Beyond Humanity series, which depicts a cyborg transitioning from an inanimate machine into a self-aware being.
While Silverman mines the inner workings of technology, another pair of artists turns their attention outward to the systems that carry water.
Returning to the Cornell are the artists known as KX2, a collaboration between sisters Ruth Avra and Dana Kleinman, whose practice revolves around the fusion of metalwork and painting. Their work was part of the World of Water exhibition at the Cornell Museum in 2024.
Like Silverman, Avra and Kleinman are concerned with the environment — in their case, water — from infrastructure to quality to rising sea levels.
Kleinman, a painter, and Avra, a metal worker, joined forces after discovering that working as solo artists could be lonely. Based in Hollywood, the sisters are known for merging industrial materials with painterly surfaces, creating works that sit at the intersection of design, engineering and environmental commentary.
“Water and the environment are at the core of our art,” says Kleinman. “We’re interested in the interconnected issues of water quality, overdevelopment, air pollution and the fragile balance of our environment.”
Using high-polished metals and painted, cut canvas, the sisters explore the networks of utility pipes, making a statement about climate change, pollution and the necessity of guarding our natural resources.
“Our pieces create a visual contrast reflecting tension between the beauty of design and the fragility of function,” Kleinman says. “We want our work to stimulate viewers and remind them of the tangible impact of climate change and hopefully, take action.”
Their concerns manifest in works like Hydra, formerly installed at the Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport, which explores the vital network of utility pipes that deliver clean drinking water.
Composed of salvaged water pipes, PVC counterparts and metal components, the work symbolizes the intricate dance of water flow and the challenges posed by our environmental footprint.
Cyanoflow, made from repurposed stainless steel, is juxtaposed with discarded house paint on repurposed canvas. The two practice what they preach, working only with recycled, repurposed materials.
“It’s important for artists who claim nature as a muse, to use non-toxic materials that don’t harm that muse,” Kleinman says.
Other pieces in the show include their Oceanids Series, Mollusk Piling and Ariadne, a steel sculpture named after the Greek goddess. The piece is rooted in nostalgia — of weaving friendship bracelets with her sister and in the duality of two sisters and two materials — coming together as one.
Where KX2 explores the hidden systems beneath our cities, Orlando-based artist Doug Powell, 64, examines the language of technology, focusing on utilizing keys from old computers to create large-scale mosaic portraits and cultural iconography.
Working at the intersection of material, language and image, the Navy veteran and former physical therapist creates digital-like images that change according to the viewer’s perspective.
His portraits of photographer Steve McCurry’s Afghan Girl and one of Pablo Picasso are part of the exhibit.
“My artwork gives obsolete technology a completely new life and purpose,” Powell says. “I’m passionate about recycling because I see value in materials many overlook, and enjoy turning potential landfill into something meaningful, detailed and lasting.”
After serving in the Gulf War, Powell left the Navy in 1991 and began experimenting with puzzle pieces.
“I wanted to do something no one else was doing,” he says. “It reminded me of my childhood when life was less complicated.”
He began creating iconic Hollywood images for Ripley Entertainment in Orlando.
Asked to create a portrait of then-Apple CEO Steve Jobs, he created a mosaic of Jobs using old Apple computer keys.
That portrait and collaboration opened a new world for Powell and his career took off, leading to gallery representation, commissions and exhibitions across the country.
He sources huge pallets of old keyboards from recycling centers and e waste facilities, sorting thousands of pieces by hand. He is drawn to the tactile quality of the material, the color of the keys — mostly white, gray and black, and the way individual letters can form both texture and meaning.
His works combine sustainability with craftsmanship, storytelling and hidden layers of meaning using embedded words and phrases that reinforce themes of communication, memory and cultural identity.
“Recycling is not just about waste reduction,” says Powell, who grew up recycling with the Boy Scouts in New Jersey. “It’s about reimagining what forgotten objects can become.”
Many of his works, which have been featured at prominent art fairs, are immediately recognizable — the Monopoly man, the Louis Vuitton and Chanel logos, Robert Indiana’s Love sculpture and the American flag.
His most recent corporate commission was for the Intel corporate headquarters in Santa Clara, Calif., for which he created portraits of their three co-founders.
Powell’s work underscores the exhibition’s central idea: that discarded materials can carry memory, meaning and cultural resonance long after their original purpose has faded.
All in all, the works in Persistence of Matter reveal how discarded materials find a second life. Each artist — whether reshaping e waste, salvaged pipes or obsolete computer keys — invites viewers to re-envision what we throw away and what we choose to value.
In doing so, the exhibition celebrates creativity, imagination and the possibility of giving materials a second, or even third life.
If you go
What: Persistence of Matter: Transforming Discarded Materials into Art that Inspires and Provokes
When: Now through Sept. 27. The exhibition is guest curated by Mavis Benson and Pam Lambie and will include a series of special programs throughout the run of the show, including artist talks, salon discussions, film screenings, installations, and additional community events.
Where: Cornell Art Museum at Old School Square, 51 N. Swinton Ave., Delray Beach
More information: delrayoldschoolsquare.com/cornell or call (561) 654-2220.