BIO
Hannah Atallah is a multidisciplinary visual artist.
With a focus on large-scale public art projects, she prioritizes the incorporation of community and relevant cultural histories in her practice. As an Arab American artist (born. Washington, DC.), she often draws from her own cultural inspirations.
Atallah has created murals, immersive installations and sculptures, and exhibited work in solo, duo and group exhibitions in the US, Mexico and Jordan.
She has been the winner of over 20 grants and awards, notably with the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, the Baltimore Convention Center, Johns Hopkins and DC public schools.
Site photographs by Jalen Joshua Williams, Jerome Thomas , Conrado Muluc , & Max Berger
Public Collections
DC Commission of the Arts & Humanities, USA
Maryland Institute College of Art, Office of the President, USA
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, USA
Public Murals
Baltimore Convention Center, USA
Garfield Elementary, USA
Francis Stevens School Without Walls, USA
Jordan Eco Park, Jordan
Abell Community Association, USA
Care First, USA
Eaton Elementary, USA
Murals DC, USA
The Tailor & The Cook, USA
Utica Coffee Roasters, USA
District Bridges, USA
Sherwin Williamss, USA
Solo & Duo Exhibitions
2025 - Unfortunately, It Was Paradise - Making Space, MD, USA
2025 - Whispers of a Distant Land: Hannah Atallah & Rafael Rodriguez - Cafritz Foundation Art Center, MD, USA
2024 - Exit West: Hannah Atallah & Naji Al Ali - Q0DE, Amman, Jordan
2022 - Flood Pulse - Lost Origins, DC, USA
Group Exhibitions
2025 - Umbrella, Curated By Peter Franklin Chang, USA November 6 - 9
2025 - Multitudes, Group Show, Curated By Laila Jadallah At Ia&A At Hillyer, USA October 3 - November 2
2025 - Re-Membering: Reem Bassous, Jackie Milad And Hannah Atallah, Freight Gallery, USA October 19
2025 - DC Art Now 2025, Group Show, Curated By Michelle May-Curry, USA September 11 - December 12
2025 - Civic Tongue, Washington Studio School, USA
2025 - A Cultural Majlis: The Aesthetics Of Solidarity/Fabulation, Hamiltonian Artists Public Program, USA
2025 - Legends Of The Small, Group Show, Curated By Tom Kim, USA
2025 - To Witness, Group Show, Rinehart, USA
2025 - Bloom, Group Show, Curated By Usan Usan At The National Landing Bid, USA
2025 - International Women’s Exhibit, Group Show: The Ven Embassy Row, USA
2024 - I Tried Using Words, Group Show: Leidy Gallery, USA
2024 - DC Art Now 2025, Group Show: DC Commission For The Arts & Humanities, USA
2024 - Love Letters To Baltimore & The DMV, Asia North, Motor House, USA
2024 - Her Voice, Her Vision, Group Show: Chesapeake Arts Center, USA
2023 - Women In The Middle East, Group Show: Outique Art Space, Jordan
2022 - Cans To Canvas, Group Show: Fada 317 & The Art Hub, Jordan
2022 - El Mal Querer, October 29 - November 19 - Solo Show: Homme Gallery, USA
2022 - Flood Pulse, April 30-May 31 - Solo Show: Lost Origins Gallery, USA
2022 - 144 - Group Show: Jab Arts At Grand Duchess, USA
2021 - DC Art Now 2021, Group Show: DC Commission For The Arts & Humanities, USA
2020 - By The People X Monochrome Art Fair, USA
2019 - Current Movements, Eaton DC, USA
2019 - Tiny Show #2, Hen House, USA
2019 - Relative Positions, O St Studios, USA
2019 - Tiny Show, Hen House, USA
2019 - Women Who Run With The Wolves, Torpedo Factory Art Center, USA
Select Honors & Grants
DC Commission For The Arts & Humanities Washington, DC (2021, 2025, 2026)
Trawick Prize Semifinalist Bethesda, MD (2025)
MICA Curatorial Assistantship Grant Baltimore, MD (2025)
Baltimore Museum Of Art, Research Assistantship Baltimore, MD (2025)
Brush Mural Festival Grant Recipient Baltimore, MD (2024)
Leslie King Hammond Graduate Fellowship Baltimore, MD (2024 - 2026)
William Mayo Herring '41 Scholarship Baltimore, MD (2024 - 2026)
MICA Graduate Merit Scholarship Baltimore, MD (2024 - 2026)
DCDGS Grant Recipient Washington, DC (2021, 2024, 2025)
Greenmount West Mural Commission Baltimore, MD (2022)
Abell Community Association Mural Grant Baltimore, MD (2022)
Baltimore Running Festival Baltimore, MD (2021)
Murals DC Grant Washington, DC (2021)
Lets Paint The Streets Grant Washington, DC (2021)
District Bridges Mural GrantWashington, DC (2020)
Collective Remembering Mural Project Grant Hamilton, NY (2019)
Academic Teaching
Maryland Institute College of Art, USA
Kings Academy, Jordan
The Lord Bertrand Russell School, Mexico
Hamilton Center for the Arts, USA
Colgate University, USA
Artist Talks
Making Space Bmore - 2025
Hamiltonian Artists - 2025
Blue Light Junction - 2025
Maryland Institute College of Art - 2025
Montgomery College - 2025
Creative Alliance - 2024
Halcyon Arts Lab - 2020
Colgate University - 2019
Press
BmoreArt: A Story in Stitches: Artist Talk by Hannah Atallah + Lecture by Wafa Ghnaim
Canvas Rebel Magazine: Meet Hannah Atallah
South Bmore: Photo Tour of the New Murals at the Baltimore Convention Center
Education
Maryland Institute College of Art, Rinehart School of Sculpture (MFA) + Curatorial Practice Emphasis
ARTIST STATEMENT
I am a visual artist operating at the nexus of nexus of art, cultural preservation, and community engagement. With a focus on public art, I specialize in culturally resonant work. Prioritizing collaboration with local community members, I infuse my designs with the stories, figures, and symbols relevant to each site. Drawing inspiration from research of the public art site, cultural textiles, and artistic patterns, I create dynamic murals, installations and sculptures that invite viewers to explore local history and symbols.
In my studio practice, I delve into the impacts and intricacies of migration, displacement, and diasporic communities, with a particular focus on the SWANA (Southwest Asia and North Africa) region. My work integrates layered stories, rich in symbolism and subtlety. Through the detailed application of Arabic calligraphy, traditional techniques like carpet weaving and marquetry, painted mosaic patterns, and sacred geometrical motifs, I pay homage to the artistic traditions of the SWANA region.
My current series of interdisciplinary work explores the nuanced experiences of the SWANA diaspora and my diverse communities. By depicting the intimate and social dimensions of contemporary life beyond the prevailing narratives of war and tragedy, I aim to honor and dignify the humanity of everyday individuals and cultures.