Pepón Osorio

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.