Artist Mukesh Sharma on his Unique Digital Recycled Art

Hello! As a lifestyle features writer, I interview lots of interesting people from different walks of life. For features, however, only a quote or two ends up being included in the final article. So, I’ve decided to share some of the more interesting ones on my blog. Here is a chat with artist Mukesh Sharma, who creates unique art from discarded materials. He recently had a solo show of his sculptural installations and paintings created from discarded digital components, including keyboards, keys, circuits and processors at Bikaner House, Delhi. Titled ‘Decoding Digital DNA’, the show was curated by Archana Khare Ghose. Excerpts from an edited interview:

Q. Why did you enter the field of art?

Mukesh Sharma (MS): I grew up in a humble background, where pursuing art as a full-fledged profession seemed unimaginable. Just as art was a concept I didn’t even know existed, my initial aspirations were driven by the need for a stable income, secure livelihood and respectable place in society. Under this mindset, becoming a government employee seemed the safest option, and I envisioned myself as an art teacher. With this goal, I joined the Jaipur School of Arts nearly three decades ago.

During my years in Jaipur, the idea of teaching art remained important to me. At that time, art was deeply linked to education and professional security. However, this understanding began to change when I pursued a Master’s degree at the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda. It was here that my perspective on art underwent a fundamental transformation. Looking back, I realise that it was during this time that the dream of becoming an art teacher gradually receded. Instead, I developed a deep, inner commitment to art. It was no longer a medium of stability, but became the most honest way to think, see, and respond to the world. Through my practice, I discovered a language that could encompass memory, experience, and transformation – things that words cannot fully express. Over time, this passion blurred the line between teaching art and living. Choosing uncertainty over security, I embraced art as a full-time, lifelong endeavour, a journey that continues to shape my life and work today.

Q. When did you start working with recycled materials?

MS: I began working with recycled materials in the early years of my art practice, around the year 2000. Its earliest signs are evident in my printmaking works, using viscosity and multilayered techniques called ‘Cineole’, which later evolved into collages of Sanganeri silk-screen prints and patrons in my large-scale paintings and works on paper. At that time, I was interested in exploring the interrelationships between technology, memory and material culture, while also attempting to craft a distinctive visual language through layered and complex textures.

Initially, my focus was on the conceptual possibilities offered by discarded objects and material effects. Over time, this vision evolved into a passion for them and gradually became a central focus of my work. Using recycled and old materials allows me to explore transformation, sustainability, and the relationship between the digital and physical worlds. Through this, objects forgotten by time reappear in a new conceptual context, with different forms and new meanings. This use of mixing different materials has consistently become the backbone of my work.

Q. Are you specifically attracted only to technology-related products or old discarded products of any nature?

I am not drawn to discarded objects of every kind. My interest lies primarily in technology-related materials, particularly computer and laptop keyboards and their keys. These objects carry within them traces of human use, data, time and labour, while simultaneously urging us to reflect on the environment, as they now form part of the ever-growing mountains of e-waste. My fascination, therefore, is not with ‘discarded objects’ alone, but with the questions they raise about technological memory, cultural meaning, human labour, and environmental impact, as well as the tension between tradition and modernity.

Q. Where do you source your materials from?

MS: I typically gather my materials from e-waste markets, repair shops, scrap dealers and old computer and laptop hardware. Finding these materials is often filled with strange and interesting experiences. Some of the conversations and stories related to kabadiwalas are so vivid that they are like works of art, usually almost impossible to ignore. Questions like, आप इनका क्या करेंगे? often arise.

These are places where discarded technology accumulates. Technology that bears within itself the marks of everyday use, labour and time. I find it fascinating how objects that have completely outlived their useful life can be revisited and repurposed with new perspectives because each such object has a long story of its own.

Q. Where do you generate ideas for your themes?

MS: My ideas stem not from a momentary inspiration, but from a long-standing story with technology. It’s never been a mere physical experience for me, it’s always been experiential – something that happens to me, lingers over time and gradually transforms. Growing up in a rapidly changing urban and technological environment, I began to realise that machines aren’t just functional tools. They quietly shape our gestures, habits, rhythms, tones and even our desires.

When I started working with abandoned keyboards and electronic waste, they no longer appeared lifeless. Each one bore the marks of constant use – the pressure of fingers, the fatigue of repetition, and the unspoken aspirations of the countless individuals who once worked on them. There is something deeply personal and quietly extraordinary about the kind of orderliness inherent in these objects.

The process of hand-cutting keyboards – grinding them, arranging them into microscopic grid-like structures and collages, layering textures and carefully reassembling them, almost like beads – became a site of constant experimentation. Over time, the material began to feel organic. Each element is collected, shaped, carved and painted, yet retains its own story and memories. This process unfolds layer by layer with sensitivity and an awareness of mortality, just like the human body itself.

The new work for my solo show ‘Decoding Digital DNA’, emerged from this ongoing engagement. I have been working with discarded computer keyboards for nearly two decades, and this work, which has evolved over the past few years, reflects the understanding that technology, like humans, follows a lifecycle – birth, use, memory and ultimately decay. As we stand on the edge of an era where keyboards may soon become obsolete, this exhibition raises the question of whether art can give new life to these objects.

Q. Why do you feel recycling matters in art?

MS: Recycling in art is important because it gives new life to discarded materials, reimagining their history and possibilities. Working with recycled objects like old keyboards and electronic waste creates a dialogue between the past and the present, transforming what were once merely useful, archival references to the past, into expressive and tactile forms for the future. This process not only highlights the materiality of these objects but also offers opportunities to reflect on sustainability, consumption and the lifecycle of technology and human experiences. Essentially, recycling in art connects memory, creativity and environmental consciousness, offering the opportunity to bring discarded objects back to life in meaningful ways.

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This blog post is part of ‘Blogaberry Dazzle’ hosted by Cindy D’Silva and Noor Anand Chawla in collaboration with Sameeksha Reads.

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*This is not a sponsored post.

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