Artwork · Genesis
Genesis
"God painted the rainbow across the sky. I painted this one with the fingerprint He gave me."~ Natasha Nanda
The Story, in my words
The beginning behind the beginning.
Every piece begins somewhere, but for me, this one began with a movie.
After watching Avatar, my imagination was ignited. I found myself thinking about creation, nature, colour and the invisible threads that connect all living things. Then, almost unexpectedly, memories of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat began resurfacing too.
At first, I couldn't understand why.
But art has a funny way of answering questions before we even know what we're asking.
As the painting unfolded, I realised this piece wasn't really about either of those stories. It was taking me back to the beginning. Back to Genesis. Back to my childhood.
The fern became the heart of the painting. I love ferns because they are among the oldest plants on Earth, with ancestors stretching back hundreds of millions of years, long before humans walked the Earth.
In a way, they've quietly witnessed almost every chapter of our planet's story. They've survived dinosaurs, changing climates and countless seasons of renewal. I love touching them and stopping to admire them on my nature adventures. I'll never forget the first time I saw one.
I sometimes joke that if a fern could talk, it would probably have the greatest autobiography ever written.
As the rainbow appeared, alongside the hidden cross and layers of texture, the painting began to feel like a story of creation, hope and new beginnings. Looking back, I can see that this artwork became a conversation between memory, imagination and faith.
One of the most unexpected gifts this piece gave me was something deeply personal.
I've struggled with my memory for a while, but while creating this painting, little fragments of childhood began returning.
I suddenly remembered being in a production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat when I was younger. It was even held in a local church. I was one of the dancers and singers, while my older sister played Isaiah.
I'd forgotten that memory for years, yet somehow this painting gently led me back to it.
That's one of the reasons this piece feels so much like Genesis. Not simply because Genesis is the beginning of the Bible, but because it reminds me that sometimes God gently brings us back to the beginning of our own stories too.
The original artwork is highly tactile, inviting you to experience it not only with your eyes but with your hands. It also glows in the dark, allowing hidden details to emerge as the light around it changes.
There is only one original. Just as there is only one story like mine.
Shot 1
Genesis, the beginning.
Every painting begins with a single mark.
This video captures the quiet beginnings of Genesis, where a blank canvas slowly comes to life through pencil, soft pastels and gentle layers of colour. There was no detailed plan, only curiosity, prayer, imagination and the freedom to let the story unfold one step at a time.
Looking back, I realise this wasn't simply the beginning of a painting. It was the beginning of remembering.
I began with the fern, and only later did the rainbow emerge around it, mirroring nature. First comes growth, then comes colour. It was almost like creation unfolding before my eyes.
"This is the part I love most. Hands covered in colour, music playing, and a blank canvas slowly becoming something more."
Shot 2
The unfolding.
This is Genesis in its earliest form.
Before the gold, before the hidden details and before the finished story, there was simply a fern, a rainbow, a blank canvas and the courage to begin.
Every masterpiece starts with a single line.
"Faith often looks like this, adding the next brushstroke before you can see the finished picture."
Shot 3
Present, not perfect.
As each layer was added, so was another layer of light. The original artwork is infused with glow-in-the-dark elements, allowing hidden details to gently emerge as daylight fades.
It's a quiet reminder that even when darkness falls, light is still present.
"The painting wasn't asking me to be perfect. It was asking me to be present."
Shot 4
The rainbow, made by hand.
One of my favourite details in this piece is the rainbow. It wasn't painted with a brush, it was created using my fingerprint.
Each colour was gently pressed onto the canvas, one touch at a time, leaving behind the unique pattern that only my hands could create. No two fingerprints are ever the same, just as no two journeys through life are ever the same.
For me, the rainbow has always been a symbol of hope, promise and new beginnings. By creating it with my fingerprint, it became something even more personal, a reminder that every life leaves an imprint on the world, often in ways we don't immediately see.
My fingerprint has become my signature on every original piece of artwork I create. Not written in ink, but woven into the artwork itself.
Shot 5
An artwork made to be felt.
The raised textures, from the roots of the fern, across the layers of paint and towards the hidden cross, invite you to experience the artwork with more than your eyes.
I hope you'll be tempted to gently run your fingertips across its surface, to slow down, to pause and simply be present.
"Some artworks are only meant to be seen. This one was created to be experienced."
Shot 6 · Close up
The closer I look at creation, the closer I feel to the Creator.
I love looking closely. Whether it's a fern on a woodland walk or a layer of paint on a canvas, I've learnt that God often hides extraordinary beauty in the smallest details. These close-ups are an invitation to pause and notice.
Shot 7 · Together
Genesis became the seed.
Although each piece can stand on its own, together they reveal another layer of the story I'm walking with God.
Sometimes we don't realise where a journey is leading until we stop, look back and notice that every brushstroke was quietly preparing the next.
A little like life. When we're living through it, the pieces can feel scattered, confusing and unfinished. Yet with time, we begin to see that nothing was ever wasted.
Looking back, we realise God wasn't simply painting individual moments, He was creating the whole masterpiece.
Experience
the artwork.
Reflect
on your own journey.
Remember
who you are, and whose you are. A child of the Most High.
Genesis
"Sometimes we see with our hands"
A tactile, glow-in-the-dark original. One fern, one fingerprint rainbow, one story of remembering. ~ Natasha Nanda