Philana was born and raised in San Francisco, California. She is a second-generation American of Chinese and Lao descent. Philana is a PhD student at the University of Kansas. She is interested in Modern and Contemporary Art and the intersectional identities of the Asian American diaspora. Philana has recently co-curated an exhibition that focused on intersectional identities of Asians in Texas called “Reflecting Selves: Asian American Artists in Texas” at the McNay Art Museum in San Antonio, Texas.