I AM was built through a slow, intuitive layering process. I began with a primed canvas, applying multiple transparent washes of acrylic paint. These early layers act as an atmospheric foundation, allowing light and colour to breathe through the surface. Into this, I introduced texture using spray paints and fluid marks, creating a sense of depth and movement beneath the image.
The painting was then developed with vibrant acrylic colours, added in successive layers. Each stage responds to what has gone before, allowing the work to emerge rather than be tightly planned. Throughout the surface, half-seen metaphors appear - numbers, fragments of cityscape, and abstract forms - visual echoes that carry personal meaning and invite quiet discovery.
These hidden elements sit beneath and around the central figure, suggesting both inner and outer worlds. The accumulated layers mirror lived experience: memory, place and belief held together in a single moment of presence.

God’s words to Moses - “I AM WHO I AM” (Exodus 3:14) - reveal a God who is self-existent, eternal, and beyond definition, yet profoundly present with His people. This mystery became the heart of I AM. Created to speak into today’s culture, where identity is often fragmented and meaning feels elusive, the painting seeks to offer a timeless presence within a contemporary visual language.

Rather than attempting to explain God, I aimed to create a visual encounter: a presence that feels both immeasurable and deeply personal. My starting point was how Jesus relates to me - with love, mercy, kindness, and grace – I wanted the figure to hold a steady, accepting gaze that invites the viewer into that same relationship.
The painting is built through many translucent, textured layers, echoing the way God reveals Himself: never all at once, always inviting deeper discovery. I wanted the work to feel monumental and powerful, yet infused with an ethereal light that speaks of the Holy Spirit and Christ as the Light of the World. Colour becomes a language of faith - purple for royalty, red for sacrifice, yellow for divine light, and blues for the river of God - woven together in a vibrant, semi-abstract surface that reflects the abundant life Jesus promises in John 10:10.

Hidden within the layers are numbers and partially obscured words. These suggest that only God knows the seasons and timings of our lives, and that His Word undergirds all things, even when it is not immediately seen. Subtle echoes of crowns and cityscapes point to God who is sovereign yet present in our world. In response to “I AM,” this painting does not define God—it gestures toward His mystery, inviting the viewer to stand, like Moses, in awe before a presence that simply is.

I have a range of original artwork and prints available and take commissions, all via my website at katriamoss.co.uk