Growing up in southern Texas a few miles from the Mexican border, Izel Vargas combines images from Latino, Hispanic, and Anglo popular culture to express the fragmentation of life on the border. Vargas explores issues such as immigration, assimilation, and how Latino/Hispanic people are represented in the media. Working in materials as hybrid as his culture, Vargas incorporates elements taken from manuals; game cards to teach Spanish; Catholic religious icons; and comics featuring Latino/Hispanic characters.