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THREE FISH SWIMMING ON

YOUR WALL

Activity Plan

Project Skills: Youth experience an art form art by using an animal from the

surrounding environment as a print.

Life Skills: Decision Making

Academic Standard:

Art and Design Education A.4.3

Learn about basic styles of art from their own and other parts of the

world

Grade Levels: Grades 3-8

Time: 90 minutes

Supplies Needed: Whole fish

Rubber fish prints

Muslin

Craft paint

Foam brushes

Dowels/Sticks

Glue

String or cord

Pennies

River rocks

Sharpies

Do Ahead:

Prepare a sample wall hanging

Cut muslin with pinking shears to 15” by 21”. Place a stick or dowel

of at least 17” one inch below the

top. Fold over, glue, hot glue or sew. Glue or hot glue three pennies

or washers to the back so that it

does not flop around in draft areas (optional). Tie a cord both ends and

hang by the center of the cord.

Prepare Gyotaku Fish Prints for

Handing Out to Youth

Print out and laminate pictures of Gyotaku fish prints from the

internet. See links at end of page.

Have at least 4-5.

Make an actual unlaminated

Gyotaku print from actual real fish on paper. This will be a dry

example you will have available to

show. Make sure that scales remain on paper.

BACKGROUND

Gyotaku (guh-yo-tah-

koo) is the Japanese art

of fish painting. It was

developed centuries ago

by Japanese fisherman

as a way of recording

the fish they caught.

They painted the fish in

ink (sumi), covered it

with a sheet of rice

paper, carefully pressed

the paper on the fish until paper was smooth with the skin of the fish and the ink bled

through the paper. They then removed the paper and a copy or a “print” was made.

As time passed, Gyotaku became more than a way of recording a fish. People were

impressed with its details and its aesthetics. Artists began experimenting with different

colors of ink, paints, paper and even cloth. Some even tried different aquatic animals

liked octopus and sea cucumber. This art has grown and has travelled around the world.

It has been shown in museums large and small.

Famous Gyotaku artists sign their works Japanese characters they have carved into

block of wood. The dab the wooden character block into red ink and press it onto the

paper, to make another print, much like they have done with the fish.

What inspires each of us about Gyotaku no one for sure can say. For some it is

capturing every detail of an animal on a piece of paper. For others the colors and the

medium they are on, such as a light piece of paper or a piece of cloth hanging in a light

breeze captures how the fish actually seems to move. Still for others it reminds them of

their own fish stories, of the first time they caught a fish, of the fish they watched under

a log in a stream, of the fish they sold at their father’s market.

WHAT TO DO

Activity: Awareness and Demonstration of Fish Prints

Show examples of Gyotaku fish prints from print pictures.

Ask you to think about how the pictures were probably made. Take answers.

Demonstrate with real fish and cloth. Paint fish, using foam brush. Color areas

of the fish differently. Make sure to use broader strokes to glaze the fish with

a thin coat rather than trying to heap the pain on.

Press down a piece paper or cloth with hands. Remove quickly in one motion.

Show the youth the print and give quiet pause.

Tell youth that many fish have scales. Ask youth if anyone can find a fish scale

on the print.

Down East Magazine, November 2011

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Prepare Art Stations for Youth

Have rubber fish from Acorn Naturalist or other nature

companies set out on a table at

different station with paints and foam brushes. Test to make sure

that the paint is thin enough to go

on the fish with enough color, but not too thick, otherwise it will

blob.

Make sure rinsing station for fish

and hand washing station is

available.

Have a drying table that will fit all

of the muslin cloth in an area with tub of river rocks to weight them

down while they dry and a few

sharpies so that youth can initial them. Warmer sunnier areas of

room work best. Should be area

that can be wiped down in case paint bleeds through muslin.

Have enough sticks/dowels, muslin cloths, and cords cut to size, with a

few extras in case of extra students

or accidents.

Created by: Matt Welter and Kevin Palmer,

4-H Youth Development

Educators, Manitowoc County

2015

Sources: Gyotaku; the art and technique of

the Japanese fish print, Hiyama,

Yoshio, 1909-

Catch a Fish-Gyotaku (Dead Fish

Art), Ashley Pomplun, Kim Westover, Megan Wecker;

CYFAR Project, Waushara County

Extension, 2010 Reviewed by Barb Barker, 4-H Youth Development

Agent

Adopted for:

Activity: Let’s Make a Wall Hanging

Shows the youth the different kinds of rubber

fish, identifying each and asking youth if they

know anything about these fish (ie have you

caught them, ate them, do they live in lakes

or rivers, what colors they are, etc.)

Show a completed wall hanging. Be sure to

show front and back.

Ask about the parts of the wall hanging.

Direct the youth to the three areas of the

room: The fish printing stations, the drying

station and the finishing station.

Tell youth about the stations they will be

visiting to complete the wall hanging.

Suggested Script

“In order to complete your Gyotaku fish print you

will need to print three fish on one sheet of muslin. These three are in a row, but

you can make them up and down, you can make them overlap, you can make them

swim off the side of the sheet.”

“It is a good idea to plan out what kind of fish you want and where you want them

on your muslin sheet. You can use your hands to map out where the fish may go.

You will also want to make sure not to print below one hand from the bottom or top

of the cloth as that may be too low or too high on the cloth. Remember you will be

folding over the cloth at the top.”

“When you get to the stations, pick the three fish you want, cover them with the

colors want, drape the cloth over them and press each one down starting with the

top and working to the bottom.”

“Once you have done all three, grab the top two corners and quickly lift up the

cloth towards you.”

“Bring the finished print to the drying station and lay it down face up and place

four stones in four corners so it doesn’t blow away. Make sure not to overlap it with

someone else’s. There is a sharpie available. Please make sure to put your initials

on the bottom of the cloth.”

“Once we have completed this we will be doing another activity while they dry and

once they are dry we will be adding the dowel, cord, and counterbalances

(pennies).”

Distribute muslin cloths and have students form lines to take turns. Direct

students and monitor time.

To avoid problems and boredom have multiple fish printing stations and assign

older youth not printing to be fish rinsers.

Playing the sounds of the river water in the background and occasionally

announcing guided imagery during the activity can inspire creativity in

youth. Here is a link to 11 hours of a stream.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gmar4gh5nIw Announce imagery to the

group every few minutes like, “Imagine you are a fish in the quiet stream

running past the camp.” “Imagine yourself swimming from rock to rock in

search of food.” “Imagine looking up to see a dragonfly sticking its tail into

the water and seeing the tiny eggs go shooting into a slow part of the stream.”

Another game that can be while waiting in line is to name fish. One person

starts with “Trout.”, says a different fish. No one can repeat another person’s

fish. If they do they are out. Whoever can last the longest gets to over.

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It is good to have a variety of at least three or more fish. However with some fish,

especially with ones with too much paint, 2-3 prints can be pressed from the same

fish. The second and third print can sometimes even be better than the first one,

with finer detail and fewer smudges.

Another good strategy with this activity is to work in pairs. One person is the rinser

and one person is the printmaker. When one youth finishes their three fish on their

piece of muslin they set it up to dry and then exchange roles.

Drying time could be a game or could be collecting natural items to decorate the

wall hanging (see suggestions below).

After drying time show students how to complete wall hanging.

Suggested Script

“Place your picture face down and in front of you like a card. Make sure the top is

above and the bottom is closest to you. One inch from the top place the dowel across the

cloth. Run a line of glue a finger’s length below the dowel all the way across.

Fold the top of the cloth over the dowel and hold it down on the glue. You will want to

use your river rocks to leave it in place while it dries and you work on the rest. The

dowel should be able to slide from side to side.”

“Measure out a piece of cord that is twice the length of the dowel. Tie one end twice

next to the muslin picture. Tie the other end twice to the other end of the picture. Make

sure there is at least two inches of cord hanging down on each side of the picture.”

“This last part is optional. The counterbalances need to be there if you don’t want your

Gyotaku picture to blow around. Some people like this , others like theirs to ripple in a

breeze. If you want a counter balance. Glue three pennies to the bottom. One in each

corner and one in the middle.”

“If you collected things along the stream you can tie them to the extra cord.”

TALK IT OVER Reflect:

Did the amount of paint you used affect your product’s turnout? Why?

What would you recommend to others doing a project like this?

If you had to start this project from scratch, what would you work on first?

Simple or more elaborate, which one makes you feel more comfortable?

Which project would you choose? If you like the simplicity of this project or

how this art looks, tell us why. If you want to add more tell us what. Let’s

take turns.

Application:

What other items in nature could you use to print designs of?

Where do you think you are going to put your wall hanging? Why did you

choose that spot?

Think of a place that would not be a good for your wall hanging? Perhaps it

will get ruined there? Perhaps it doesn’t match? Perhaps it’s something else.

Tell us where and why.

ENHANCE/SIMPLIFY

Enhance for Older Children:

Have students use paper instead of muslin and try out different forms of paper

to find out which type works best (newsprint, woodblock paper, magazine

paper, rice paper, cotton rag, construction paper.

Have students add acquatic plants to dry on paper around the fish.

Have students teach younger students the process.

Have students use actual ink an pen to label different parts of the fish.

Enhancements for Younger Children:

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Have children sing “Three Little Fishies” song between each activity, making

fish movements with hands during song.

Have children identify colors in gyotaku samples and wall hanging samples.

Have children identify bigger/smaller, shorter/taller, top/bottom/middle.

Enhancements for All Ages

Have students collect small bits of driftwood, shell and other things found

along the area where the fish live add to the fish print. They can tie them to

the cord or glue them to the muslin (if hot glue is available). Ask them to

think about how these things might relate to the fishes lives.

HELPFUL HINTS

Have an open water source available to rinse fish periodically.

Limit amount of paint given to youth.

Test out paint ahead of time. You may need to thin out paint to achieve best

consistency.

Have several stations available.

If a large group of youth limit colors of fish and plant the idea of “Swiping the

fish quickly with the foam brush.”

ADDITIONAL WEB LINKS http://artprojectgirl.blogspot.com/2012/04/1-fish-100-success-easy-gyotaku.html

http://waushara.uwex.edu/files/2013/03/new-Gyotaku-Dead-fish-Art.doc

For images of Gyotaku Click Here or Google Image Search “Gyotaku”

Reviewed by Wisconsin 4-H Learning Resources Committee on:

An EEO/AA employer, University of Wisconsin-Extension provides equal opportunities in employment and

programming, including Title IX and American with Disabilities (ADA) requirements. © 2005 by the Board of

Regents of the University of Wisconsin System. Developed by the Wisconsin 4-H Office, 431 Lowell Hall, 610 Langdon St., Madison, WI 53703. The 4-H name and emblem are federally protected under Title 18 US Code 707.