Our Artists

MIXED MEDIA ARTIST/RECYCLED MATERIAL FASHION DESIGNER

Elisa Lopez Trejo is a mixed media artist and recycled fashion designer from Mexico City who moved to Charlotte in 2010. With 27 years of artistic experience, she has participated in Charlotte Fashion Week annually since 2017 and performed in Live Painting Shows for the Mint Museum's Mint to Move events. Elisa is a member of the OBRA Collective, which exhibits work at the OBRA Gallery in VAPA.

PHOTOGRAPHER

Héctor Vaca Cruz is a Charlotte-based Latino documentary photographer. Born in New York and raised in South Carolina, he is of Ecuadorian and Puerto Rican heritage. Héctor explores themes of privilege, racism, colorism, classism, and identity. His images spark dialogue, in order to better understand these issues and find solutions. More importantly, his photos give a voice to those who have been stifled by a system based on privilege and prejudice.

Héctor’s work has been exhibited around the country at the Chrysler Museum of Art, Columbia Museum of Art, Levine Museum of the New South, McColl Center, OBRA Collective Gallery, The Light Factory, Queens University, Studio MLA, Resolution Studios, Diamante Arts and Culture Center, and abroad in Albania and Slovakia.

MIXED MEDIA ARTIST

Paint, watercolor, pen and ink, collage, photography, murals, you name it! Born in Leon, Mexico but Charlotte resident for over 30 years. My first proud art moment was getting the front cover of my pre-school yearbook. Self-described extrovert party animal and bad environmentalist!

DIGITAL ART

Megan Gonzalez is a visual artist working in painting, watercolor, and digital illustration. Through her art she seeks to instill happiness, compassion and joy in color. Drawing inspiration from vivid dreams, nature, and her passion for immigrant rights, Megan dreams of painting the world in color and hopes her work inspires people to break free from the mundane and add more spice into their lives. She is co-founder and Executive Director of OBRA Collective.

POET & ARTIST

José is a multidisciplinary artist who describes himself as an artisan. Was born in Mexico and lives in Charlotte, North Carolina since 1996. Vázquez writes poetry and short stories and founded the poetry groups ArteSanos de la Palabra and Voz ES, with the first one he co-wrote the Book ‘The Fragrance of Water’. In addition to practicing photography, he creates visual art with salvaged and found materials. In his latest creative exploration he worked on the production of a documentary titled Five Dollars for my Story and currently is a founding member of MAS + arte a group focused on creating and promoting hands-on art in the Charlotte area.

ARTIST

Self taught multi-media artist from Atlanta, Georgia. Specializes in Mayan-inspired art work and has a series called Gonza fish. With an extensive list of installments and exhibitions, Julio also creates community events and is a proud member of Obra.

Julio's Website

VISUAL ARTIST

Visual artist...more to come!

PHOTOGRAPHER

Photographer…..more to come!

3D PRINT ARTIST

3D printing artist from Puerto Rico...more to come!

VISUAL ARTIST & TEACHING ARTIST

Zuleyma Castrejon Salinas is a Mexican teaching artist living and working in Charlotte, NC. She is a DACA recipient, who has been in the U.S since she was 2 years old. In her 28 years of living in North Carolina she has yet to travel back home and uses her art practice to connect to her Mexican identity and roots. She is a proud graduate of Johnson C. Smith University. Her work is characterized by vivid, bright colors and reminiscent of Mexican imagery and textiles. Zuleyma spends her time being a full time mom to her 2 year old son, while sustaining an art practice and leading various workshops around the city.

Rebeca Carvajal is from Limón, Costa Rica and has lived in Charlotte for most of her life. She creates art reflecting nature and social justice themes, using woodcut printmaking, mixed media, and acrylic painting as tools for emotional expression. As a trained mental health art therapist, Rebeca facilitates healing and wellness through creative spaces for others. @rebelucionarte

PHOTOGRAPHER

Joel Motta grew up surrounded by cameras and photography as his mother's assistant from age 10. When digital photography emerged in the early 2000s, he lost interest in the medium. Four years ago, he rediscovered his mother's analog camera collecting dust in her studio and "borrowed" it—reigniting his passion for capturing the world through film. He continues to enjoy seeing, feeling, and photographing through an analog lens.

Follow him on Instagram: @jorelo35mm

CREATIVE & ART SUPPORTER

…..more to come!

VISUAL ARTIST & FASHION DESIGNER

Rocío is a mixed media artist and designer from Ecuador who explores color, texture, and imagination through diverse materials and techniques. Her dynamic, one-of-a-kind pieces invite viewers to experience visual and emotional depth while celebrating unity and the beauty of diverse cultures coming together.

POET

Irlanda Ruiz is a bilingual published author and poet from Puerto Rico who has called Charlotte home since 2018. Her literary work explores resilience, identity, and social transformation through personal narratives that bridge cultural divides. Her published works include "Ecos de Fortaleza," where she guided cancer survivors in transforming experiences into healing narratives, and poetry collection "Pinceladas Parlantes." Currently developing thriller stories and an advocacy memoir, Ruiz celebrates Charlotte's diverse cultural landscape through storytelling that centers marginalized voices.

VISUAL ARTIST

La Casa de la Cultura is a community-driven space dedicated to celebrating and promoting the diverse cultural expressions of Charlotte's global community. We strengthen social fabric through art and cultural exchange, serving as a bridge between cultures, generations, and disciplines. Through workshops, exhibitions, performances, and educational programs, we encourage active participation from immigrants, refugees, Indigenous and Afro-descendant communities. We believe in art's power for resistance, healing, and social transformation while supporting both emerging and established artists. In rapidly growing Charlotte, Casa de la Cultura serves as a refuge for memory and a laboratory for new narratives where culture is preserved and reimagined daily.

ART LEADER

Co-founder of Casa de la Cultura…..more to come!