self reflection
a solo exhibition by Kyle olani
fall 2025
Each piece is born from stillness inside movement, peace inside pressure. It’s about standing still while everything around you demands motion. About finding presence when the past and future are both pulling at you. These works don’t search for perfection or resolution, only grace. They’re about recognition; the simple act of seeing and being seen. In a world pressured to move forward while still carrying the weight of the past, Self Reflection is a reminder to stop, breathe, and face yourself fully and honestly, in real time.
self-reflection
24 x 36 in. | charcoal on paper 2022
Self Reflection is a conversation with myself. I wanted to capture a moment when you’re in your zone, by yourself, with only your thoughts, and the truth staring back. The piece is a nod to Norman Rockwell’s Triple Self-Portrait, but through my own lens and experience. I wanted to reinterpret that idea of seeing yourself from multiple angles, but as a young artist navigating purpose, identity, and vision. The mirror shows who I am in the moment, the canvas shows who I’m becoming, and the camera and luggage in the background represent the journey, always moving, always observing, always growing. This piece isn’t about perfection or vanity, it’s about honesty. It’s about pausing long enough to actually see yourself, flaws and all, and recognize the process of becoming as part of the art itself.
"be the renaissance" collection
sold in 2022
DON'T SHOOT THE MESSENGER
30 x 42 in. | charcoal on paper 2025
This piece is about conviction. standing on what you believe in, even when the message isn’t easy to deliver. The figure’s gesture feels like both defense and direction, a reminder that truth can be misread as threat when people aren’t ready to hear it. His body is tense but controlled, aware of his power and responsibility. For me, it’s about learning to speak with purpose, not ego, understanding that carrying light sometimes means being misunderstood.
The Doorman
30 x 42 in. | charcoal on paper 2025
This piece is about alignment and understanding that every door in life isn’t meant to open just because you want it to. The figure represents that moment of pause, when you have to check in with spirit before you move. It’s about discernment, knowing that timing, purpose, and faith all have to line up before the path clears. The Doorman reminds us that access without alignment can be dangerous, and that sometimes the delay is divine protection.
white noise
42 x 45 in. | charcoal on paper 2025
This piece speaks to the chaos that surrounds us, the constant hum of distraction, politics, and noise that tries to pull us out of ourselves. The figure represents stillness in the storm, a man grounded in purpose while the world spins out of control. His eyes are closed, but his awareness is sharp. He’s not ignoring the chaos, he’s choosing peace over confusion. White Noise is about that discipline, the strength to remain centered when everything around you demands a reaction.
SELAH
30 x 42 in. | charcoal on paper 2025
the pause — A sacred moment between release and revelation. It’s where silence speaks the loudest. The figure looks upward, not in search of something outside herself, but in acknowledgment of what’s already within. There’s vulnerability in her stillness, yet strength in her surrender TO THE MOMENT. This piece is about breath, remindING you to slow down, to listen, and to trust the spaces between the noise. Sometimes, reflection itself is the prayer.
sold
rain - reign - rein
48 x 60 in. | charcoal on paper 2024
“Rain – Reign – Rein” stands as the statue of liberty of the ecosystem I have created through community. a symbol of liberation through consciousness rather than conquest. The work embodies the threefold power of becoming: to endure, to govern, and to control. Through rain, she is cleansed and renewed; through reign, she claims authority over her narrative; through rein, she disciplines her spirit and directs her power. Her upward gesture channels both surrender and ascension. it is a call to rise while staying rooted in grace. She is both muse and monument, representing the freedom that comes when art, spirit, and community converge under divine order.
sold
mandatory peace
22 x 30 in. | charcoal on paper 2025
This piece is about the kind of rest you don’t plan for, the kind that comes when your body and spirit decide they’ve had enough. It’s not about laziness or giving up, it’s about being forced to slow down so you can actually heal. Sometimes peace isn’t a luxury, it’s a demand. Mandatory Peace is that moment when stillness becomes the only way forward.
sold
exhale
30 x 2 in. | charcoal on paper 2025
This piece captures that moment when the body finally lets go, when the day has taken everything it could, and all that’s left is the quiet. It’s not exhaustion, it’s release. exhale is about the small relief that comes after giving your all, the kind of peace that doesn’t need words. It’s a reminder that rest isn’t just recovery, it’s reflection.
sold
rebirth
22 x 40 in. | charcoal on paper 2023
This piece represents the cycle of transformation, how something must be released for something greater to rise. The child at the bottom symbolizes purity and new life, while the figures above carry the weight of what once was. It’s about letting go of the versions of ourselves that can’t come with us and honoring what they taught us. Rebirth is the return, not to who we were, but to who we were always meant to be.
imagine me
18 x 30 in. | charcoal on paper 2025
This piece is about seeing yourself clearly, not for who you’ve been, but for who you’re becoming. it’s a reflection on freedom, healing, and acceptance. The figure reaching toward her own image represents that moment when you start to recognize the person you’ve always been beneath everything life tried to make you forget. a piece about renewal, the quiet strength it takes to face yourself and still choose love.
fore
22 x 30 in. | charcoal on paper 2025
This piece is about focus and rhythm, the calm before movement. Golf, to me, has always reflected patience, precision, and self-control. Every swing starts long before contact is made. it begins with composure, balance, and trust in the motion you’ve practiced. Fore is a nod to that awareness, a reminder to call out before the impact, to stay intentional with every move, and to respect the space between thought and action.
sold
blowing smoke
22 x 30 in. | charcoal on paper 2025
This piece is about expression, letting what’s inside find a way out. The figure’s not performing, he’s releasing. Blowing Smoke captures that space between control and flow, where art becomes a kind of exhale.
sold
sage vi
14 x 20 in. | charcoal on paper 2025
this continuation of the sage series speaks to the weight of vision, the tension between knowing and not being able to control what’s next. It’s that quiet space between wisdom and worry, where understanding feels more like responsibility than comfort.
sold
sunflower
14 x 20 in. | charcoal on paper 2024
Like a sunflower, she turns toward the light without question, trusting it will always be there. Sunflower is a reflection on joy, softness, and the quiet strength that comes from simply being.
sold
After the Storm
24 x 36 in. | charcoal on paper 2023
after the storm is when the flowers bloom
"pivot" collection
sold in 2023
emerging caterpillar
14 x 20 in. | charcoal on paper 2024
that in-between stage where growth isn’t pretty, but necessary. The boy looks like he’s just beginning to break free, caught between who he was and who he’s becoming. this piece speaks to the process of unfolding, the struggle, the shedding, and the quiet courage it takes to step into something new. It’s a reminder that change doesn’t always look graceful, but it’s always sacred.
brothers prayer
24 x 36 in. | charcoal on paper 2024
The two boys represent brotherhood in its purest form. they are covering each other in prayer, even when words fall short. It’s a quiet moment of strength, showing that prayer isn’t just personal, it’s communal.
"dreams and reality" collection
sold in 2024
everlasting light
40 x 52 in. | charcoal on paper 2024
This piece is about the divine light that lives within all of us, the kind that can’t be dimmed by circumstance or time. It represents the spirit that guides, protects, and reminds us who we are when everything else fades. Everlasting Light is a call to keep that energy alive, to nurture what’s sacred inside. It’s about faith in self, faith in purpose, and faith in the source that never burns out.
"dreams and reality" collection
sold in 2024
victorious messenger
40 x 52 in. | charcoal on paper 2021
the embodiment of purpose, the understanding that the gift was never meant to be hidden, but shared. It speaks to the battles fought between truth and illusion, faith and fear, and the strength it takes to keep walking in alignment with what was divinely placed within you.
"a victorious migration" collection
sold in 2021
more love
22 x 30 in. | charcoal on paper 2022
More Love is a reminder that healing begins within ourselves first. The figure represents grace. It’s about choosing softness over pride, empathy over ego, and remembering that self love is the root of all creation.
"be the renaissance" collection
sold in 2024
words of wisdom
24 x 36 in. | charcoal on paper 2022
This piece is about the exchange between generations — the lessons that don’t come from books, but from lived experience. The elder represents the voice of guidance, the kind that reminds you who you are and where you come from. The two young people listening symbolize the next generation, absorbing not just words, but values and vision. Words of Wisdom is a reminder that growth begins with listening — and that the stories of those who came before us are the blueprint for everything we’re building now.
"community" collection
sold in 2022
up from the ashes
26 x 40 in. | charcoal on paper 2023
a testimony to resilience, rising again with a clearer spirit, a stronger heart, and a deeper understanding of purpose. It’s about what happens when prayer becomes the bridge between who you were and who you’re meant to be.
"pivot" collection
sold in 2023
free
36 x 24 in. | charcoal on paper 2021
It’s the moment she breathes without weight, without expectation. Free is a celebration of womanhood in its purest state. its soft, strong, and unbound, finally at peace with simply being.
"unapologetically free" collection
sold in 2021
self-enrichment
22 x 30 in. | charcoal on paper 2021
This piece is about curiosity, focus, and the power of knowledge to shape who we become
"community" collection
sold in 2022
dreams and reality
14 x 20 in. | charcoal on paper 2024
This piece is about curiosity, focus, and the power of knowledge to shape who we become
"dreams and reality" collection
artist's collection
baby dreamer
11 x 14 in. | charcoal on paper 2023
The child’s gaze out the window represents curiosity in its purest form, the moment before the world tells you what’s possible and what isn’t. Baby Dreamer is a reflection on innocence and vision. a reminder that every dream begins with wonder, and that somewhere inside us, that same spark still lives.
"pivot" collection
sold in 2023
brothers keeper
24 x 24 in. | charcoal on paper 2022
representing what it means to stand firm beside someone, to cover them the way you’d want to be covered. It’s a reminder that our strength is multiplied in unity, and that being your brother’s keeper isn’t just about defense, it’s about guidance, faith, and shared growth.
"community" collection
sold in 2022
solo
22 x 30 in. | charcoal on paper
2024
There are moments in every journey when the noise falls away and you’re left alone with yourself. Solo is that moment for me. A self-portrait stripped of pretense, it captures me in reflection, caught between the weight of where I’ve come from and the uncertainty of where I’m headed. The empty space surrounding me isn’t just silence, it’s possibility. It’s the quiet before a decision, the stillness before the next leap forward. Sitting on that chair, leaning into the weight of my own thoughts, I wasn’t just looking back at what I had built, I was also looking forward into the unknown, trying to find the courage to step into it fully.
"dreams and reality" collection
sold in 2024
