Lane was born in Alice Springs and grew up in Papunya where she attended school. Her mother is Jocelyn Nampitjinpa, a Warlpiri woman and her father is Benny Tjapatjari from Warakurna in the NPY lands of Western Australia. She remembered a long time ago, when her father would walk with camels to Hermannsburg with rations for the people. There was a film made about her father, “Benny and the Dreamers” (1992) that tells the story of Benny and other Pintupi men.

Kumantjayi Lane met her husband and fellow painter a long time ago when he worked as a stockman between Glen Helen, Haasts Bluff and Pupunya. The two lived between Haasts Bluff, Papunya and Kintore as they raised their three children. For a time, they also lived at Pirrnpirrnga (desert bore) outstation, where her father is from. Lane said she had been painting for a long time. She remembered sitting and painting at the old Ikuntji Art Centre with the old men and women, amongst them, Eunice Napanangka Jack and Mitjili Napurrula. She remembered that they used to make a fire inside the art centre and sometimes sleep there overnight.  Lane painted for Papunya Tula artists for some time, but has been painting for Ikuntji now since 2001. She predominantly painted the Tjukurrpa from her father’s country, Pirrnpirrnga - Desert Bore, depicting the surrounding tali tali (sand hills) with bold lines, overlayed with fine dot work in varying colours. Her father used to paint that same story.