Jose Cotto

New Orleans, Louisiana

Artworks shown are selected from works submitted by the artist in their grant or residency application. All works are copyright of the artist or artist’s estate.

About Jose Cotto

Headshot of Jose Cotto

Jose Cotto was born and raised in Great Brook Valley, a housing project in Worcester, Massachusetts, and has called New Orleans home since 2012. The son of a single mother raising four kids, he often found himself being pulled between the streets and his desire to create. Art was always a means to escape and tune in, to forget and remember, to channel all the beauty that existed in the chaos in order to get a glimpse of what could be. Known for his intimate portraits of the people and places that surround him, Jose's creative practice also includes poetry, carpentry, architecture, mark making, and more. His work explores the relationships between people, place, and time, with hopes to understand what it might mean to live up to our human potential, to live in true harmony with the energies of our home and our destinies.

Program Participation

Joan Mitchell Center Residency, 2022

Website / Social Links

While documenting neighborhoods—especially in New Orleans, where history and lived experiences are palpable—my process relies heavily on feeling and intuition. Rather than taking photos, I roam to experience them by listening closely to and trusting the conversations that linger in the atmosphere and move me to raise my camera.”