Liana Owad

About the Artist

Liana Owad is an artist and educator based in Maryland. She earned her MFA from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2014 and her BFA from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania in 2010. A passionate advocate for the maker movement, Owad has played a key role in launching two Makerspaces: the Michael Stanley MakerSpace at the Chesapeake Arts Center in Brooklyn Park, MD, and the Nebraska Innovation Studio in Lincoln, NE. She served as the Studio Art Manager at Hood College for three years and was previously the Sculpture Technician at the Maine College of Art and Design. Owad has exhibited her work in several notable exhibitions and has juried numerous shows, contributing to the artistic community. Additionally, she has taught as an adjunct professor at NOVA, Hood College, and Gettysburg College. Currently, she is the Studio Arts Safety Technician in the Art & Design Department at the Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC).  

Artist's Statement

My sculptures and installations explore the intricate dynamics of domestic spaces, reflecting on how home environments both reveal and conceal aspects of identity. Using a variety of materials including metal, wood, found objects, textiles, ceramics, and recyclables, I construct forms that encourage deliberate, interactive engagement with space. The interplay of these materials creates membranes or layers, allowing access to different sections of the form. Certain elements obscure or shield, while others offer transparency and entry, reducing the protective barrier and inviting interaction. Central to this body of work is the tension between protection and vulnerability. Solid, opaque forms provide a sense of security, serving as shields that conceal the interior, while more permeable or transparent elements allow moments of access, suggesting openness. These contrasting materials and forms create a structured framework that echoes the dual nature of our domestic environments, which both protect and reveal our inner lives. Through this exploration, I examine how the physical structure of a home not only shelters and safeguards but also shapes our personal identities and social interactions. The balance between public and intimate spaces becomes a metaphor for the ways in which we navigate the boundaries between what we choose to reveal and what we keep hidden, how we seek protection while allowing for moments of openness.