Gyotaku

Domo arigato! No kidding? It’s a fish print and not a type of short poetry, who’d a thought.

But since our very own museum is preparing for a fishing show, maybe we ought to talk about Gyotaku. No, no you don’t have to run the kids out of the room it’s just fish printing. Those clever Japanese they figured out a way record their prized catches long before photography became common. Yep, they coated that fishy with paint and rubbed rice paper on it and viola, fishy prints.

What began as a way to ensure bragging rights after the family dinner has evolved into a complex and lasting art form. The fish print or Gyotaku has come to be present in galleries all over the world.

I’m not at all sure that those first fish were all that savory after being coated in paint and rubbed with rice paper, but we’ve come a long waym baby. Today some Gyotaku are done with rubber fish made specifically for the purpose. Darn, no dinner unless we open that can of cat food.

Even the rice paper has its challengers; parchment, tracing paper and hand made rag papers have all been used. Seems the image is more important than the method.

So let’s take a look and see what all the fuss and fea…scales are about.

You need few materials for a Gyotaku, paint of some kind, thin paper and a fish. No probably sardines from a can will not do. The fish is placed on a hard surface, wood is traditional, but marble or even a plastic will do. Then the artist covers the fish in paint, a single color or many as the artist desires and when the painting process is complete the whole fish is covered by a sheet of paper, rice traditionally, but you’re artist so make art, use what you like. Once the fish is covered you take a semi-ridged implement and rub the paint into the paper. Fish print.

Peel the paper away from the fish and if you are really traditional add your chop. (That’s an Asian seal, like the Great Seal of America, but more personal.) Mount the whole thing in a simple black frame, (remember this is an Asian art form and simplicity is the rule), and head out for the next art show. The process is rewarding and the results are spectacular. And if you don’t like fish you can use something else. Leaves work right well, but I wouldn’t use the cat. They can be most resentful about the whole covered in paint thingy.