Shane Hastings is a 2026 Bluethumb Rising Star and Australian artist based on Kabi Kabi land in Yaroomba on the Sunshine Coast Queensland. Holding a BA in Art and Design, he has spent more than 16 years working across urban design, visualisation, art, and photography. In 2021, he founded his studio, Iluka Creative, and returned to painting with renewed focus, stepping back into a practice that had quietly waited for him.
His paintings are shaped by a deep connection to nature. Traveling through coastal and inland Australia, hiking remote trails, and photographing the landscape all inform his work. Shane paints largely from memory, allowing colour, movement, and texture to express the feeling of a place rather than its literal form.
Working in acrylic on medium and large canvases, each piece develops through layered, intuitive gestures. His background in design brings a sense of structure and balance, while the process itself remains instinctive and immersive.
Living within walking distance of the beach, with a studio surrounded by dense rainforest, Shane draws constant inspiration from his immediate environment. His work reflects not just the landscape, but the experience of being immersed within it.