Lani Mitchell (b. 1990, Melbourne) is an Australian-born, Los Angeles-based visual artist whose work navigates the intersection of emotional resonance, abstraction, and transformation. A graduate of Monash University with a double degree in Visual Art and Arts, majoring in Painting and English Literature, Mitchell has been a full-time artist since the age of 19, establishing herself as a significant figure in the Australian contemporary art scene.

Mitchell’s artistic trajectory is marked by an impressive body of work and six solo exhibitions. In 2014, she unveiled her sell-out exhibition in Australia before relocating to New York City in 2015. There, she developed Chrysalis, a series that Mitchell was invited to showcase at Parsons School of Design. After returning to Melbourne, she completed her academic studies, debuting her Helm series in 2015 and Swoon in 2016, both presented at Graham Geddes Gallery in High Street, Armadale. Her works were also selected for auction at Menzies and Leonard Joel Auction Houses, where they were presented alongside the works of iconic Australian artists such as Sidney Nolan and John Olsen.

Mitchell’s practice has garnered significant attention, with high-profile commissions, including a series of works for Chanel to mark the launch of their fragrance L'eau. In 2019, she collaborated with The Australian Ballet, digitally translating her artwork onto silk for their Body-Torque: Atelier performance, accompanied by the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. Her exhibitions KIND (2017) and EDEN (2018) were presented at Metro Gallery, further cementing her standing in contemporary painting. Her work has been featured in prominent publications such as RUSSH, The Design Files, Fashion Journal, ID Magazine, and Broadsheet.

In 2022, Mitchell relocated to Los Angeles, where she continued her engagement with the art world, creating site-specific works and curating Life Drawing events in collaboration with Ace Hotel, DTLA. Mitchell has been hosting Life Drawing pop-up events since 2016. She was also invited to host a series of Life Drawing events for MPavilion in celebration of their 10-year anniversary at the Tadao Ando structure in the Botanic Gardens. She is currently focused on her latest body of work, Crying at the Lipstick Bar. This new series of large-scale oil paintings meditates on the fragility of life, love, loss, and renewal.

In these intricate, emotionally charged landscapes, Mitchell forges a union between abstraction and feeling. Her canvases transcend representation, weaving visceral narratives that speak to the alchemy of transformation. Through bold gestural strokes and muted color fields, she creates a visual space that is both intimate and expansive, where the narrative is implied rather than explicitly told. These works—delicate, ethereal, and ghostly in their ambiguity—invite the viewer into a liminal space, suspended between grief and beauty, loss and longing, time and memory. Mitchell’s landscapes unfold like an elegy, where each stroke becomes an act of distillation, transmuting profound emotion into visual form.

Her paintings offer not just a reflection of the human condition but a contemplation on the potential for personal metamorphosis. The viewer is invited to explore the fragility of existence and its profound capacity for renewal—where beauty, hope, and romance endure despite life’s impermanence. In Mitchell’s work, the intellectual and the personal intertwine, leaving space for interpretation and introspection, offering the viewer a rare opportunity to engage with the transformative power of art.



Education

  • Bachelor of Visual Arts (Painting) & Bachelor of Arts (English Literature)
    Monash University, Melbourne, Australia | 2010–2013

Solo Exhibitions

  • Crying at the Lipstick Bar (Proposed) — Melbourne, Australia | 2025

  • EDEN — Metro Gallery, Armadale, Melbourne, Australia | 2018

  • KIND — Metro Gallery, Armadale, Melbourne, Australia | 2017

  • SWOON — Graham Geddes Project Space, Melbourne, Australia | 2016

  • HELM — Graham Geddes Project Space, Melbourne, Australia | 2015

  • CHRYSALIS — Parsons School of Design, New York, USA | 2015

  • SKIN — 550 Swan St, Richmond, Melbourne, Australia | 2014

Significant Collaborations

  • MPavilion 10, Tadao Ando — A series of Life Drawing events  | 2024

  • Ace Hotel, DTLA — Life Drawing event  | 2023

  • Pedrisât Perfume — Film Direction and Content Creation | 2020–present

  • Pedrisât Perfume — Event Curation and Hosting  | 2020 - present

  • Australian Ballet — Body-Torque - on-stage visual  | 2018

  • Chanel Perfume — Launch of new fragrance L'eau - Visuals for Margaret Zhang  | 2016

Curated Perfume Events

  • Collingwood House — Initial Perfume Launch & Winter Collection Launch | 2022

  • At the Above — Summer Collection Launch | 2023

  • The Cara Hotel, Los Angeles — Introduction to Pedrisât Launch | 2023

  • Lucy Folk Brand Collaboration — Super 8 Video Work for Brand and Event | 2023

Awards & Honors

  • O-1 Visa — Alien of Extraordinary Ability (USA) | 2018

  • Green Card Holder — Permanent Resident (USA) 

  • Guest Speaker — Parsons School of Design, New York, USA | 2014

  • Guest Speaker — Canadian International School, Tokyo, Japan | 2016

  • Guest Speaker — Star of the Sea College, Melbourne, Australia | 2016]

Selected Press and Publications

  • M Pavilion 10, online publication — Artist profile

  • RUSSH Magazine — Lani Mitchell presents ‘KIND’ Sydney

  • The Design Files — Lani Mitchell – ‘KIND’ Exhibition

  • Yen Magazine — Artist Feature

  • Fashion Journal — Fall Apart, Visuals for photographer Jordan Drysdale

  • ID Magazine — The Sensual World of Lani Mitchell

  • Broadsheet — Lani Mitchell’s ‘Chrysalis’ Exhibition

  • Design Crush Blog — ‘KIND’ Exhibition

  • Belle Magazine, The Daily Mail, Fashion Journal Magazine — Featured in a variety of lifestyle and art publications.

Featured in Auction Houses

  • Menzies Art Brands — Lani Mitchell – Artist Profile

  • Leonard Joel Auction House — Lani Mitchell – Auction Lot

  • Mutual Art — Lani Mitchell – Artist Profile

References
Available upon request.