About the Work
Hurricane Melissa has left Western Jamaica in ruins, including the family home of artist and UCLA professor Cosmo Whyte. Anat Ebgi and Exhibition A are partnering to produce a special archival pigment print of kiss mi neck back ii. Sales of this print will be donated directly to the artist to support relief efforts. Whyte was born in St. Andrew and raised in Montego Bay. While his family is now safe, the hurricane has left catastrophic damage. What remains is the immense task of rebuilding, not only restoring structures, but reclaiming a sense of safety, stability, and belonging. kiss mi neck back ii (2019) belongs to a series of works inspired by photographs Whyte took during the West Indian Carnival, J’ouvert, celebrated within Miami’s diasporic communities. The figure-based drawings are rendered in layers of charcoal, their forms gradually obscured through distortion and compression. The title, a Jamaican patois expression meaning, “I can’t believe it,” conveys surprise or wonder and mirrors the drawing’s charged tension between recognition and obliteration. From his drawings to his installation works and performances, Cosmo Whyte explores how migration unsettles identity. Frequently drawing upon his Caribbean roots, Whyte’s work engages the material and allegorical legacies of colonialism and the complexities of Black diasporic experience. Slippery in their legibility, Whyte evokes familiarity and dislocation, reflecting on the fluidity of identity and the instability of belonging. He offers these complicated juxtapositions as a way to interrogate the shaping discourse around particular events, regions, or periods—especially as they relate to interpretations of the colonial project in the Caribbean and postcolonial diaspora.
Artist Biography
Cosmo Whyte (b. 1982, St. Andrew, Jamaica) received a BFA from Bennington College, a post-baccalaureate at Maryland Institute College of Art, and a MFA from University of Michigan. Recent museum exhibitions include The Mother’s Tongue, Pressed to the Grinding Stone at The Arts Club of Chicago (2025), Beneath Its Tongue The Fish Rolls The Hook To Sharpen Its Cadence at MOCA Georgia (2020), and No Longers Yours at ICA San Diego (2020). Whyte has exhibited in biennial exhibitions including Prospect.5 New Orleans (2022) 13th Havana Biennial, the Jamaica Biennial (2017), and the Atlanta Biennial (2016). His work has been included in exhibitions at Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, IL; The High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA; The Drawing Center, New York, NY; The Somerset House, London, UK; Museum of Latin American Art, Los Angeles, CA; Atlanta Contemporary, Atlanta, GA; Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France; and the National Gallery of Jamaica, Kingston, Jamaica. Whyte's work is in public museum collections including the High Museum, Atlanta; Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, IL; International African American Museum, Charlotte, NC; Museum of Contemporary Art Georgia; National Gallery of Jamaica; Pérez Art Museum Miami; and the Speed Museum, Louisville, KY. In 2022 he joined the UCLA School of the Arts and Architecture as an assistant professor. Whyte lives and works in Los Angeles, CA.
Authentication & Resale
Signature hand stamped. This work is also accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity signed and numbered by Exhibition A.
Be sure to keep your Certificate of Authenticity (COA) in a safe place. We are unable to replace or reissue COAs.
Framing
Framed artwork is custom framed once it is ordered. Allow 3-5 weeks for framing and delivery.
FRAME
All of our frames are made from sustainably sourced engineered hardwood that is manufactured in the USA. Frames are available in Black or White Matte and Walnut.
MAT
Prints are hinged to a conservation quality, acid-free and lignin-free Cellulose matboard, using acid-free polyethylene cloth tape. Each mat’s surface paper is fade and bleed resistant and is attached to a conversation quality foam-core board. Some of our work (typically those pieces with a deckled edge) is floated on the matboard with spacers to separate the artwork from the glazing.
GLAZING
We use museum quality .060 mm plexiglass to frame your work. It blocks 82-85% of UV rays to prevent color fading from exposure to light, protecting your art for years to come.
DIMENSIONS
Our White and Black frames have a ⅞” wide flat face and are 15/16” deep. Mats are 1” wide for prints up to 8” x 10”. Mats are 2” wide for prints larger than 8” x 10”.
Our Natural and Walnut frames have a ¾” wide flat face and are 1 ⅛” deep. Mats are 1” wide for prints up to 8” x 10”. Mats are 2” wide for prints larger than 8” x 10”.
Any artwork that is floated will be placed in a frame that has a ⅝” wide flat face and is 1 5/16” deep. Work will be floated with a 1” border around it.
Shippings & Returns
Unframed work ships within 5 business days of your order. Framed artwork is custom framed once the sale ends on November 26th. Please allow 2 weeks for framing and delivery from sale end. Need it faster? Expedited options may be available by emailing help@exhibitiona.com. All work ships from the US. International customers are responsible for any customs, duty, or VAT charges.
If you change your mind after placing your order, please email us at help@exhibitiona.com within 24 hours. We will not be able to accommodate cancellations for framed orders after that time period (as your frame will have been ordered and cut within that time period). We may not be able to accommodate your request to cancel your order for an unframed work after 24 hours if it has been packaged and processed by our fulfillment center.
We are unable to accept returns on custom framed artwork. Our general policy is that we do not accept returns. If your print arrives damaged or does not meet your expectations, you may be eligible for a replacement or return. Any issues must be reported within 5 business days of receipt by emailing help@exhibitiona.com.
