Pausing, Discovering and Reflecting With ‘Soft Light, Slow Time’

Dancing light and soft pastels flood the paper on Lani Burville’s easel, beaming softly at the audience sitting in for her Artist In Residence talk. The painted objects glisten with iridescence and transport the guests into the slow, gentle world of still life painting.

Lani is a visual artist based in Central Queensland and her inspiration comes from the beauty in everyday and mundane moments, with a particular interest in capturing light. Her latest exhibition, ‘Soft Light, Slow Time’, took inspiration from the Gladstone Regional Art Gallery & Museum’s permanent collection, and offered patrons of the gallery a glimpse into her artistic process as she worked on her art over a four-week residency.

The Residency offers artists the opportunity to select artworks from the Gladstone Regional Art Gallery and Museum's collection that resonate with their practice. It allows them to study the collection closely while on site in a dedicated space with time for reflection and creative development, and encourages meaningful community engagement and conversation between creatives and members of the public.

Lani has been a finalist in art awards across Queensland, including the Queensland Regional Art Awards, the Bayton Awards and Du Rietz Art Awards, winning First Prize in ‘Works on Paper’ (Brigalow Arts Awards 2025), the Highly Commended Young Emerging Artist Bundaberg Art Prize (2025), and the Pieter Groen-int-woud Memorial Young Emerging Artist Award (Martin Hanson Memorial Art Awards 2024).

She has also had the opportunity for her art to be featured in state-wide art installations, most notably the Queensland Regional Art Awards touring exhibition in Brisbane 2025, stopping in Cairns, Port Douglas, Townsville and St George in 2026, and her solo exhibition, “Reflections & Refractions” at the Banana Shire Regional Art Gallery, which focuses on bringing transparent and reflective objects into a new context and focussing on their unintentional beauty.

Using shells and corals from the archives as reference material, she experimented with a papercut technique and demonstrated her refined skills as an established watercolour artist. As she opened each new object, Lani said, "It was like Christmas unwrapping each shell! I loved them so much."

Recently, Lani was invited to speak at the GRAGM Lates event on Friday 10 th July for the official opening of ‘Soft Light, Slow Time’, which also saw the ‘NAIDOC’, ‘NUTCH (Family)’ and the GRAGM Courtyard Mural unveiled while the public enjoyed light refreshments, live music and beautiful artwork. Both Lani and local Gooreng Gooreng/Wakka Wakka artist Lakarri Faerber gave talks on the night, followed by painting demonstrations from both artists. Under the guidance of Lakarri, guests had the opportunity to create a unique communal artwork inspired by the evening’s events.

Despite her artist’s residency ending on the 25 th of July, the ‘Soft Light, Slow Time’ exhibit is open until the 8 th of August to visitors who are keen to slow their pace, pause time and discover the stories held within each artwork. Lani Burville’s artworks are available for purchase from her online shop, www.lanimaecreative.com, and the Central Queensland art community is ready to see what she creates next as she explores more creative techniques.