On Fish and Art

Walking along the Tiber a few weeks ago I noticed the swirls of activity in the water - the fish were swimming alongside each other, playfully rising to the surface and then diving deeper - when I realized that I was witnessing the mating games of the fishes, I couldn't help but break into smile - there was such life affirming,joyful ring to that sight. An older gentleman stopped by, and asked, "Quie pesci?" "Si, sono innamorati," was my, probably a bit odd, answer. As I was going away I saw him still standing there, filming.

 Walking along the Tiber yesterday I saw a lot of fish floating belly up. It was so strange and such a contrast to the greenery of leaves, the chatter of seagulls, the movement of people jogging. The memories of the silvery dance that I enjoyed watching so much not long ago, and the picture of the lifeless bodies - didn't want to align.
Later my husband reminded me that some species of fish travel a long way to their breeding grounds, don't eat during their migration and simply die of exhaustion after mating. Quite literally from “la petite mort" to " le sommeil éternel.

Fish and its natural habitat always have certain fascination for me. Watching water and, if lucky, fish swimming in it, always has been  a very calming and relaxing activity for me. (I dearly miss my long walks along the ocean that was part of my routine while living in the Bahamas).

A lot of cultures view fish as an auspicious symbol of happiness, freedom, fertility and abundance. I remember that orange carps, the fish sacred in the Oriental cultures, were prominent features in Beijing where they swam in the ponds in the parks and also in water basins near the entrances to the shops or private homes.

It is said that if a woman sees a fish in her dream - she is to expect a child, and if a man sees a fish – something equally fortunate comes his way. There are fairy tales about fish granting wishes - most famous ones are by Brothers Grimm "The Fisherman and his Wife" and by A. Pushkin "The Tale of the Fisherman and the Fish"/"Сказка о рыбаке и рыбке"

A lot of written and pictorial sources show that from the earliest times of Christianity the fish was a symbol of Christ. The Greek word for fish “ichthys”/ ΙΧΘΥΣ is considered  an acronym for the words "Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, Θεοῦ Υἱός, Σωτήρ"/ Iesous Christos Theou Yios Soter/Jesus Christ Saviour Son of God”

Since the water baptism was practiced by immersion, it established a parallel between fish and converts, and  the early Church Fathers often called their faithful "pisciculi" /little fish (" piscina" = lat. for fish) In fact, the Latin word for the vases in which water for baptism was stored is piscina, literally a fish pond, the same word as the swimming pool in modern Italian language.

And let’s not forget that fish has been a food staple for centuries and centuries. No wonder that fish are being widely depicted in art, and is also a popular motif for various household items. In religious paintings it usually closely connected with Christ and often appears on the table alongside wine and bread, and in genre paintings  are simply celebrating fish as a food and one of nature's creations.

Seven Fish Carpet fragment

The Fishmonger Vincenzo Campi, ca.1580

Still Life with Cat and Fish Jean-Simeon Chardin, 1728

Christ in the House of Simon, Dirck Bouts, 1445-50

Tavern Scene, Diego Velazquez, 1618

Young Tobias and the Angel, Francesco Botticini, 1470

There is a painting by Rafael that is called Madonna Del Pesce/Madonna with Fish, which he created around 1514.

Madonna Del Pesce,
Rafael, 1514

What is interesting in this particular painting aside from its beauty that it clearly shows the use of the attributes as a way of recognition who is who in the painting. It was customary in religious paintings to show the participants wearing certain colours, having a certain object in his/her hands, being accompanied by the certain animal. Those features were connected either with their life, or deeds, or martyrdom, and acted as name tags. Here Madonna can be easily recognized by her central position and the blue of her dress, the child on her knee doesn't need an introduction. The bearded man reading a book is St. Jerome whom the viewer can identify by the tamed lion at his feet, (The Golden Legend says that St. Jerome removed the thorn from the lion's paw while living in the monastery and the animal remained with him) On the other side of the throne is Archangel Rafael and a young boy holding a fish in his hands. The same young boy is on the painting above and there he is also carrying a fish.  The fish in his hand is a part of his story - he caught it with archangels' Rafael help and use its entrails to cure his father's blindness.

And so, from the sights of the morning walk to yet another  Madonna - one track mind, what can I say...