Pisces
1600x1300mm
oil on canvas
2026
First mentioned:
Hesiods Theogony ca. 730-700 BCE
The story of Aphrodite and Eros
When the monster Typhon rose against the gods, even Olympus was thrown into chaos. Typhon was a creature of terrifying size and power, with a hundred serpent heads and a voice that could shake the heavens. The gods fled, each taking the form of an animal to escape him.
Aphrodite and her son Eros found themselves pursued to a riverbank. With Typhon closing in behind them, they transformed themselves into fish and plunged into the river. Fearing that they might become separated, the two fish were bound together by a cord swimming towards safety.
Eventually a battle between the gods and Typhon took place ending with Zeus hurling thunderbolts at Typhon and crushing him beneath Mount Etna in Sicily, explaining the volcanic eruptions to this day.
The motherly instincts to flee instead of fight helped Aphrodite and Eros escape and survive, their transformation remembered among the stars. The two fish became Pisces, eternally connected by the bond that had saved them.
Pisces therefore became a symbol not only of escape and transformation, but of love and attachment in the face of destruction.
