Shaped and sized like a standard disposable coffee cup, this piece echoes the colors of a classic espresso drink. Encircling the piece are the stirrers—plastic plugs and iced tea paddles—objects designed for a moment’s convenience. Yet each one represents an immense industrial journey: oil exploration, extraction, transport, and refinement. All to produce these tiny plastic tools, used for seconds, then tossed aside. You’ll see them scattered on asphalt and concrete, dropped in parking lots on the way to your car. Eventually, they’ll vanish from sight—but not from the world. These small, disposable items will outlast us all, lingering in the environment for generations. This piece asks us to confront the absurdity of permanence born from convenience.

Name Of Artist (So You Are Searchable!)

Julie Kornblum

Exact Dimensions

6" H x 4" W x 4" D

Year Created

2021

Provide details about the signature

signed on the underside of the base

Materials

Disposable and discarded plastic coffee stirrers, waxed linen thread