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Fishy art

PHOTO: AP

LOOK-ALIKE: Traditional form of Japanese fish printing.

Ryuko Hoshino, an expert in the Japanese art of "gyotaku" shows off a fish print made from a sea bream and the actual fish below, during the International Fishing Show in Yokohama on the outskirts of Tokyo, recently. Hoshino paints the paper-covered fish kept on a foam plate for about an hour, to capture the details of its shape.

Gyotaku is a traditional form of Japanese fish printing, dating from the mid 1800s. The process is similar to block printing or linocut. In order to make a gyotaku print, one places a fish on a flat surface and paints one side with ink. A piece of rice paper is then carefully applied on top of the fish and then pulled off with a mirror image of the fish having been created on the substrate. Gyotaku is very popular among children in Japan. Sometimes, rubber fish replicas are used.

COMPLIED BY SUBAJAYANTHI B.

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