20.9% of Milwaukee’s population is made up of Hispanic or Latino households, a reminder that we’re a culturally diverse city whose strength lies in the unique traditions, values, and skillsets each of us bring to the table.
There is no better example of that than Jacobo Lovo (pronounced ha-KO-bo). After his family fled Nicaragua during times of political persecution and settled in Milwaukee, he has used his career to celebrate his Latino heritage, foster a love of art in the next generation, build a stronger arts community, and create greater cultural awareness.
With Hispanic Heritage Month in full swing, we’re excited to have him as our Milwaukeean of the Week! Keep reading to hear more of Jacobo’s story.
What is your background ?
I was born in Nicaragua the youngest of five siblings and raised by our mother. Due to political turmoil and civil war my mother had to get my oldest brother and sister out of Nicaragua in the early 80’s. As the political situation continued to deteriorate, my mother chose to relocate our entire family to the U.S.
I was nine years old when we all reunited in 1987, and Milwaukee has been home ever since.
Any stories from your youth that define your path?
I have plenty of stories and memories from Nicaragua. However, I think what’s shaped me most was the struggles and challenges I saw my mother and older brother face and overcome to create a better life for all of us in this country. My mother went from being a land and business owner to completely starting over in Milwaukee. She worked the third shift in a foundry and worked in multiple Milwaukee factories, until injuries from doing manual labor forced her to look for less physically demanding work. She enrolled at MATC where she earned her GED and associate degree in early childcare. Her unwavering resolve to provide for our family and the example she set as she pursued her education continue to inspire me.
My mother is also an artist at heart. When we were growing up, she would invite my siblings and I to help her create large scale collages on cardboard and plywood using images from newspapers and magazines. My early inclination toward art came from her.
I also want to acknowledge Mary Galinowski, my middle school art teacher at Kosciusko Middle School. In Ms. G’s class I became convinced that art was what I enjoyed most! Her influence left a huge impact and as I learned more from her, my desire to create art grew and kept me out of trouble. Ms. G encouraged me to attend Milwaukee High School of the Arts, where I graduated from in 1996.
Where did you study?
I earned a BFA from the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design (MIAD) in 2000. After graduating MIAD, I used my BFA to work as an Art Teacher at Bruce-Guadalupe Community School (BGCS). I taught art at BGCS for close to 16 years before accepting the invitation to become the Managing Artistic Director at Latino Arts, Inc.
What do you do for work now?
In October 2016, I was invited to become the Managing Artistic Director at Latino Arts, Inc. Teaching art at the middle school level was something I loved deeply and couldn’t imagine leaving, but after some long conversations and encouragement from my wife, I interviewed for the job.
2026 is loaded with milestones for me. This year we are celebrating 40 years of Cultura y Corazón (Culture and Heart) at Latino Arts, and in October I will be celebrating ten years at this great organization. Serving my community through the arts is a great privilege, and along with the small but mighty team at Latino Arts, I take great care and pride in anchoring all our programming to our education and culturally driven mission. Our upcoming fall season is full of great cultural workshops, performances, and gallery exhibitions for our 40th anniversary, and we invite everyone to join us at one of our upcoming events.
Can you talk a little bit about your career journey? How’d you get to where you are now?
Ultimately, I strongly believe that the best way to show gratitude is by thriving in the opportunities you are given. For me, my early inclinations toward art allowed me to meet amazing mentors that were not only kind, but patient. As a young person and budding artist in Milwaukee, I was inspired by murals of local artist Reynaldo Hernandez and historical artists like Salvador Dalí.
Art has continued to open doors for more opportunities. Not only am I a practicing artist, I have the honor of curating our exhibits at Latino Arts. It is one of my favorite things to do and allows me to highlight Hispanic artists from all over the world. Being a gallerist has allowed me to meet many Latin American artists that I find inspiring, and it has enabled me to bring to light one of my goals by starting an artist collective focused on Magical Realism.
Along with Guatemalan painter Richie Morales, I started the Macondo Project Collective. While Magical Realism is primarily known as a literary genre, we interpret it as a way to explore cultural roots, identity, and the idea that who we are as individuals is not solely defined by our place of birth; but who we continue to evolve into within our immigrant experience, and our artistic practices.
The Macondo Project is proud to invite everyone to our next exhibit at The Catacombs of Neto Museum located at the lower level of the Marshall Building in Third Ward. Reconociéndonos – Recognizing Us will be on view as part of Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15th through October 4th and a reception will be held on Saturday, September 26th, from 3pm to 5pm.
The work featured in this exhibit “explores identity as a process of constant transformation. To recognize ‘Us’ is not to arrive at a fixed image of who we are, but to understand that we are made up of many layers: family memory, the places we inhabit, the relationships we build, and what we choose to remember, or to forget.” My career path continues to be paved from a place of gratitude and a focus on creating opportunities in the arts for others to celebrate the beauty and depth within our collective Hispanic/Latino heritage and identity in the United States.
Can you talk more about your community involvement?
Working for Latino Arts has allowed me to use my art and art education background to place greater emphasis on the cultural education of our arts programming. I take great pride in the programming we present and our efforts to be responsive to community feedback.
As a practicing artist, I believe that a piece of art I create is not complete until it’s been presented publicly, and an audience has an opportunity to interact with it. I apply the same philosophy with our programming at Latino Arts and truly enjoy the many conversations that come from students and community members who attend our programs and give us feedback. Through this, I believe we have been able to create greater positive cultural awareness.
I also serve on the Joy Engine board of directors and serve on advisory committees at the Milwaukee Arts Museum, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, and Milwaukee Rep.
What do you like about living in Milwaukee?
Milwaukee is HOME! It is where my immediate family is, where I met my wife, and where we play with our two sons. I love the deep pool of talent across the arts in our communities. I love that you can get authentic ethnic foods from across the world in so many of our neighborhoods. And for being a Central American transplant, I even love the winters! But nothing beats Summer in Milwaukee—there is always something to do!
What do you want to see for Milwaukee’s future?
I would love to see a thriving arts culture that is recognized and supported by local government, recognizing the arts as an economic backbone of our city. I see the amazing efforts to keep music accessible (by small venues like the Cactus Club) and great programming our neighbors at Arts@Large are bringing to Walker’s Point. I know they, alongside Latino Arts, are facing the same challenging funding landscape and could use more support from our city’s leaders to uplift the arts in a meaningful and sustainable way.
Anything else we should know about you, your job, community involvement, or life in general?
I want to invite everyone to come celebrate 40 years of Cultura y Corazón at Latino Arts! Our Fall season is a beautiful celebration of the deep talent in the arts within the Hispanic/Latino community, and we would love for you to experience it.