Name: Yonke EncontraDOS
Start: 2026-01-17T19:00:00-06:00
Location: Presa House Gallery

Presa House Gallery proudly presents Yonke EncontraDOS, a two-person exhibition featuring South Texas artists Ruben Luna, aka Gacho Style, and Gil Rocha. Their work intersects through a shared appreciation of rasquache aesthetics and the inventive spirit found in working-class Mexican American communities. Together, their artworks highlight the resourcefulness, humor, and cultural memories embedded in everyday materials and makeshift strategies that have shaped life along the U.S.–Mexico border and South Texas.
The opening reception will be held on Saturday, January 17, from 7–11 pm, featuring music by Tones. The exhibition will remain on view by appointment through February 28, 2026.
About the Artists
Gil Rocha (b. 1977) is a South Texas artist, curator, and former educator born and raised in Laredo, Texas. Rocha is a multidisciplinary artist whose work spans painting, collage, sculpture, assemblage, installation, and writing. Rooted in the lived experience of the Mexican American border, his practice explores the duality of crossing—examining not only physical borders, but also the boundaries of identity, culture, and humanity. Drawing from personal history, community engagement, and storytelling, his work reflects a deep commitment to place and people. Alongside his studio practice, Rocha has spent over two decades serving his community as an educator, workshop facilitator, muralist, public artist, and curator, and currently serves as Board President of the Laredo Center for the Arts. His work balances reflection and action, blending creative expression with social responsibility.
Ruben Luna (b. 1974), aka “Gacho Style,” is a self-taught contemporary artist born and raised on San Antonio’s South Side. Luna creates work that explores the theory of Rasquachismo, drawing inspiration from the creative challenge of generating new mixed-media objects through various techniques, often incorporating crude or the most basic materials. He offers nostalgic tributes to the people, phrases, and things shaped by creativity found in his hometown’s working-class Mexican American communities. His work is often playful, but at its core reveals the ability to be resourceful and “make do.” Each piece is a practice in problem-solving—overcoming aesthetics for the necessity of function—combining inventiveness, ingenuity, and improvisation.