A New Splash on Gyotaku

Fifth Grade
3 to 4 Class Periods

Gyotaku Fish Print, Fifth Grade Art Lesson

Day 1:
I had students begin this lesson by viewing two different youtube clips on Gyotaku.  To reference one of them you can check out my previous post Gyotaku Fish Print.  The other youtube clip I stubbled across last summer and you can view it here: Gyotaku: The Ancient Art of Japanese Fish Printing.

I then gave students a demonstration on how to create a fish print.  We discussed the vocabulary related to printmaking, how to label our paper and and tips on how to get a quality print.  Students were told that they would be divided up into groups next class period to print.  Each student were told they would be required to create two prints.

For the remaining of the class period, we discussed the beautiful colors, creatures and plants one would see under the ocean.  I had many photos printed out and set on the table for student reference.  Student set to work on creating an underwater ocean seascape on 12 x 18 inch black construction paper using colored pencils.

Day 2:
Students were broken into small groups on this day to tackle printing making.  I had some groups continue working on their seascape background and others printing.  As groups finished printing, they then switched with a group that was using colored pencils.

Printing the fish.

Day 3 & 4:
On this day, students were shown how to add detail to their fish print with colored pencils (such as popping out the eyes, attaching fins and adding scales).  After details were added, students continued to add details to the background of their seascape.

Adding details to fish print using colored pencils.

When backgrounds are completed, students carefully bubble cut around their fish prints and then glued them to their compositions.  Students were given the choice of only using one print or both.  We discussed different compositions options.

Student Examples: