Fish printing was created in Japan at least a century ago, where it is called gyotaku. It was originally used to record a fisherman’s catches, but was developed into an art form over time.

There are two ways to print a fish. When printing indirectly, silk or a similar fabric is glued to the fish and the color is applied to the cloth, using the color of the fish as a guide. When printing directly, color is applied to the fish and paper or cloth is pressed on the fish, transferring an image to the paper or cloth. Indirect printing

is a great way to get very detailed and exact prints because the fish is always visible as a color and design guide as you proceed. When color is applied directly to the fish there is not always quite that amount of control, and prints may not have the same precision as one done indirectly.

Artists use a wide variety of mediums, both water and oil based. Water based mediums such as inks and acrylic can be washed off when it is time to eat the fish. Oil based mediums mean the filet knife must come out to prepare dinner. There is no right or wrong as far as what to use. Every artist finds what works best for him or her.