Edge-to-Edge Splendor Fills Maria Yolanda Liebana’s Buoyant Paintings

Maria Yolanda Liebana, a New York-based artist, presents her first institutional solo exhibition, A Place to Be Held, at Montclair State University's George Segal Gallery. The show showcases her maximalist, mixed-media paintings that blend elements of tarot, pop culture, and personal narrative. The fantastical Eden-like garden depicted in Liebana's works is a riot of rainbows, flowers, clouds, cosmic phenomena, and more.

"The exhibition imagines a matriarchal world where chance, identity, and desire are always in motion," according to a statement accompanying the exhibition.

Liebana's vibrant works incorporate a diverse array of materials, including wallpaper, mirror tiles, pearls, glitter, disco balls, sequins, and rhinestones. She embraces the joy and playfulness of these elements while also paying homage to Catholicism and ancient mythologies through symbols like chalices and cherubs. As a first-generation Latinx immigrant who grew up in New Jersey, Liebana's personal experiences and her own journey as a mother are integral to her artistic practice.

Her daughter's birth inspired a body of work that explores motherhood as a physical and spiritual terrain characterized by labor, wonder, and transformation.

The artist's work focuses on confident, empowered women engaging in various activities such as dancing, reclining, and enjoying one another's company. These figures symbolize universal feminine strength and dominion. Liebana's exhibition runs from September 15 through December 11 at Montclair State University's George Segal Gallery. To view more of Liebana's work, check out her Instagram profile.