If you have a Facebook or Instagram account, you’ve probably seen some old photos popping up in 2024 that give you a direct flashback to Aruba’s social life in the ’90s and 2000s. A party, an event, a small group of friends, your partner from back then (or still), someone you haven’t seen in many years, dancing, posing, or just having a good time.
Since the moment the photos started appearing on the REXARUBA page and people began sharing them, the reaction was instant. Tag after tag. The comments were:
- "Look at us!"
- "OMG, I was so skinny back then!"
- "Check out my eyebrows, check out that style!"
- "Who’s that next to me?! 😂"
That was the first sign: He’s back. Rex is back. All of those were his photos. From his personal archive.
“It all started with a simple trip to Bonaire,” Reynaldo Ponson, now known as REX, recalls. “I had a film camera. I was with my cousins taking pictures of landscapes, the salt hills. But then I realized the camera didn’t have any film inside. Not a single photo was captured. The very next day, I had to return to Aruba, but I was determined to get those shots. I bought a fresh roll of film and went back to all the exact same places to take every picture again.”
In that moment, something deep awakened a true passion.
He was 15 years old, and he remembers it as if it were yesterday.
In Aruba, his talent for capturing people and social moments blossomed quickly. “I lived near Robert, Ataniro’s cousin, and we used to ride our bikes around selling Basic One CDs door to door.” During a Basic One show, a spontaneous opportunity presented itself: “Curt Labadie called me up on stage and handed me the camera. He told me: ‘Take photos of the performance.’ This was at the Piedra Plat Entertainment Center. From that moment on, everything started to roll.”
Rex was at every Basic One event, taking photos just for fun. He attended evening classes (avond havo) and worked part-time at Antillean Dakota (now known as Kooyman). With the money he saved, he bought his first digital camera: a Sony Cybershot.
From local events to bigger parties, his lens never stopped moving. He eventually moved to the Netherlands and began photographing parties for Party peeps 2000.
When he returned to Aruba, he was contacted to work officially for the website "Den e Sauce", documenting events on the island so that Arubans in the Netherlands could see them. He received a press badge, and everything became more formal. A little later, Renzo Muscarielo, DJ of CoolPro on CoolFM, called him. “He asked if I wanted to work on their website, Coolaruba.com. I believe that opportunity opened many doors. Because of the radio’s popularity, many more people began to know me. That changed a lot for me.”
When Rex reflects on his journey, one moment stands out in his mind: “Allrick Kock from Diario called me to ask if I was near an incident. I was. I took the photo. The next day, it was on the front page of Diario. That gave me a huge push.”
Rex became the official photographer for Diario and CoolFM.com, and freelanced for many magazines, including Xclusivo. His photos appeared in more than one outlet almost every day.
Wherever there was social life, Rex was there.
“Thanks to all your support, Rexaruba was born. We opened a photography studio and even won an international award. Those were the glory years.” After that, he took a different path.
“I stepped away from photography for a while and entered the world of entrepreneurship for 15 years. It was a different kind of work, but something was always missing… that feeling of having a camera in my hand. That feeling is unmatched.”
In 2024, without any big announcement, Rexaruba began posting old photos on his social media. A shot of a group of friends, with a simple caption: "Back in time…"
The reaction was immediate. People began tagging each other. Others saw themselves and left a like. Within just a couple of days, his page had become a local sensation.
Parties at Choose a Name, Havana, City One, Bahia, Carlos & Charlies, Garufa, Euphoria, Moomba Beach, and many more. Photo after photo, Rex transported people back to sweet, spontaneous, and unforgettable moments.
“From the moment I made my comeback, I felt so much love and support. My goal has always been to bring back the good memories we’ve lived and to honor them in a beautiful way.”
“Now that I’ve reconnected with my passion, I’m working on a new project with the same dedication. We’re moving forward in marketing, content creation, and photography. My wish is to expand Rexaruba beyond Aruba’s borders.”
And all the love, support, and likes he’s receiving now are proof of one thing:
Aruba has not forgotten its beloved photographer.
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