Tiana Nanayo Kuʻuleialoha Honda was born and raised on the island of Hawaiʻi in the small town of Hilo. Though her cultural background consists of several mixed ethnicities, she primarily identifies as Native Hawaiian (from her mother) and Japanese (from her father). Honda received her BA in Art with a minor in Japanese Studies from the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo in 2019 and her MFA in Visual Art from the University of Kansas in 2023.

Her current body of work reflects upon her relationship with home during her time of displacement from it as well as her attempts to reacquaint herself with aspects of her mixed cultural identities.