Pepón Osorio

Colorful tokens and dolls fill this bright-red velvet-lined box representing the artist’s personal associations with his native Puerto Rico. Boxing gloves, toy soldiers, a knife, a dollar sign, and photographs of political figures critique sociopolitical issues in the island state, lacing the kitschy paraphernalia with darker references to corruption and violence.

- Wai Yee Chiong, associate curator of Asian art

Pepón Osorio is known for elaborate, room-size installations that often use humor and kitsch to confront difficult political and social issues. T.K.O. is a kind of miniature installation or three-dimensional collage. Within its bright-red velvet-lined box, Osorio has placed various ob-jects and tokens that he associates with his native Puerto Rico. These items mingle with images of political figures whom he holds responsi-ble for decades of corruption and violence there. “T.K.O.” stands for “technical knockout,” a boxing term used to declare a match’s end when a still-conscious boxer cannot continue to fight. The cover features boxing gloves with plastic toy soldiers and a metallic dollar sign. Together with the work’s title, this arrangement hints at a larger political story contained inside the box.

In this work, Osorio has placed various objects and tokens that he associates with his native Puerto Rico within a velvet-lined box, along with images of the political figures whom he holds responsible for decades of corruption and violence there.

En este trabajo Osorio ha colocado varios objetos y símbolos que él asocia con su nativo Puerto Rico, en un cofre forrado de terciopelo. El artista colocó también imágenes de figuras políticas a los cuales él hace responsable por años de

corrupción y violencia en su tierra natal.