Jo Cosme, a Native Boricua multimedia artist from Borikén, Puerto Rico, faced displacement to Seattle following Hurricane María’s landfall. She was deeply struck by North Americans’ lack of awareness regarding their nation’s exploitative and ongoing colonial relationship with her homeland archipelago. Through digital media and installations, Cosme contrasts the romanticized idea of Borikén, PR, as a Caribbean paradise with the stark reality of a People enduring colonial rule for over 5 centuries.

Holding a BFA in photography from PR’s School of Fine Arts, Cosme’s work has graced venues globally, including Museo de las Américas (PR), Whatcom Museum (WA), Alexandria Museum of Art (LA), and Galerie Rivoli 59 (Paris). By 2021 she earned the Puerto Rican Fellowship for MASS MoCA’s A4A Residency. The following year, she received grants from the Collective Power Fund and Artist Trust. In 2023, she received the Bernie Funk Artist Scholarship, CityArtist grant, McMillen Foundation Fellowship, and 4Culture’s Arc Fellowship. Cosme kicked off 2024 at Inscape Arts and Cultural Center’s arts residency, leading to the inauguration of her first solo show, Welcome to Paradise: ¡Viva Puerto Rico Libre! at Seattle’s 4Culture Gallery.

Welcome to Paradise is a growing body of work meant to tour the continental US, aiming to educate and mobilize against US Imperialism and disaster capitalism. It challenges audiences to confront their complicity in perpetuating power dynamics and internalized settler mindsets during travel. Cosme intends to expand the project throughout the year, culminating in an arts residency at Anderson Ranch Arts Center in the fall.