2 Koi swim in a pool with reflections as smoke on the water

Koi Duo – Oil Painting

Water’s surface becomes canvas for cosmic dreams, two koi navigate the boundaries between earthly and celestial realms. Their fluid forms, rendered in oils that capture both motion and meditation, trace elegant arcs through waters that mirror the swirling storms of a distant giant.

Here, the familiar dance of ornamental carp transcends its terrestrial origins. Each ripple in their wake becomes a disturbance in the fabricated cosmos above—their movement below creating new patterns in the Jovian tableau that crowns their aqueous domain. The surface tension holds these two realities in delicate suspension, neither fully water nor fully sky, but something more profound: a membrane between known and unknown, between the tangible poetry of fish-flesh and the distant dreams of gas giants.

The smokey ephemera of Jupiter’s borrowed storms find perfect echo in the water’s constantly shifting surface. Each wave catches light and shadow in ways that speak to the eternal dance of chaos and order—how turbulence creates pattern, how disturbance gives birth to beauty. The koi, in their eternal circling, become both creators and observers of this miniature universe, their golden and pearl scales catching fragments of light that could be stars or could be merely afternoon sun transformed by imagination and pigment.

There’s something profound in this convergence of scales—how the massive atmospheric bands of a distant planet find their echo in the subtle play of light across disturbed water, how beings as earthbound as fish can swim through what appears to be deep space. Through careful attention to the way light bends and breaks across the water’s surface, the painting captures that eternal moment where the ordinary transcends itself, where a garden pond becomes an observatory for cosmic wonder.

In this suspended moment, the boundaries between above and below, between near and far, between real and imagined, dissolve into something approaching truth. The koi continue their eternal dance, unaware perhaps that their simple movements create and destroy universe after universe in the reflective cosmos above—each ripple a new storm system, each turn a reorganization of celestial forces.

Here, in this marriage of earthly and celestial waters, we find a meditation on perspective itself—how the grandest cosmic designs might be mirrored in the smallest disturbances of our daily world, how we might find infinity in a garden pond if only we learn to see with sufficient wonder.

Koi Bounded and Content

Koi - bounded but Content - Oil painting on reclaimed wood panel by Christian Hammer 2019 in Washington State
Oil painting on reclaimed wood panel 9″x15″ by Christian Hammer 2019

Koi Bounded and Content

Oil Painting on reclaimed wood panel by Christian Hammer

In this painting, the artist Christian Hammer explores the idea of boundaries and contentment, using the metaphor of a koi fish living within the reclaimed wood panel. The koi’s acceptance of its limited space represents the idea that contentment can be found within any boundaries, and that true happiness comes from appreciating the present moment.

The koi’s peaceful posture further convey the idea of contentment and acceptance. The reclaimed wood panel, with its rough and textured surface, suggests the passage of time and history. The imperfections of the wood are celebrated, adding beauty and interest to the painting.

The koi seems to embody the spirit of the wood, finding beauty and meaning within its limits.

The wood was once part of a living tree, with its own journey from seedling to maturity. Then, it was harvested and used for a practical purpose. Finally, it was reclaimed and repurposed into a work of art.

Each stage of its existence has given it new meaning and value, and this adds depth and complexity to the painting.

The fact that this is the third painting on this panel adds a layer of mystery and intrigue to the artwork. The previous paintings, though mostly erased, still leave their mark, like the shadows of past lives. They add depth and texture, both physically and metaphorically, giving the koi’s journey a sense of history and resonance.

It’s as if the koi is not only content in its present moment, but also accepting of the journey that led it there.

Original is sold, prints are available: $400

Koi Duo – Oil on Canvas 18″x24″ Painting

Koi Duo - Oil on Canvas - 18"x24" Painting by Christian Hammer 2022
Koi Duo – Oil painting on canvas by Christian Hammer 2022

I’ve enjoyed painting Koi for some time, they are a fantastic creature to indulge composition studies with as they flow and interact with each other in their liquid medium. Koi are a topic I return to on regular basis. This was a simple study and an attempt to make a more abstract and graphical composition with the ripples and interaction of this pair.