How big was that fish you caught? This big? This big? This big? Without photographic evidence, there's nothing that proves you caught a whopper, and that's been true since the dawn of fishing. In fact, hundreds of years ago, long before photography could capture the moment, Japanese fishermen invented their own way to record trophy catches. They called it Gyotaku. Gyotaku is the ancient art of printing fish that originated in Japan as a way to record trophy catches prior to the modern day camera. Gyo means fish and taku means impression. There are several different stories about how Gyotaku came about, but it basically started with fishermen needing a way to record the species and size of the fish they caught over 100 years ago. Fishermen took paper, ink, and brushes out to sea with them. They told stories of great adventures at sea. Since the Japanese revered certain fish, the fishermen would take a rubbing from these fish and release them. To make the rubbing, they would paint the fish with non-toxic sumi-e ink and print them on rice paper. This way they could be released or cleaned and sold at market. The first prints like this were for records only with no extra details. It wasn't until the mid 1800's that they began painting eye details and other embellishments onto the prints. One famous nobleman, Lord Sakai, was an avid fisherman, and, when he made a large catch, he wanted to preserve the memory of the large, red sea bream. To do so, he commissioned a fisherman to print his catch. After this, many fisherman would bring their Gyotaku prints to Lord Sakai, and if he liked their work, he would hire them to print for him. Many prints hung in the palace during the Edo period. After this period, Gyotaku was not as popular and began to fade away. Today, Gyotaku has become a popular art form, enjoyed by many. And the prints are said to bring good luck to the fishermen. But the art form is quite different than it used to be. Most artists today learn on their own by trial and error. Before the artist begins to print, the fish needs to be prepared for printing. First, the artist places the fish on a hollowed out surface. Then the artist spreads the fins out and pins them down on the board to dry. They then clean the fish with water. When it comes time to print, there are two different methods. The indirect method begins with pasting moist fabric or paper onto the fish using rice paste. Then, the artist uses a tompo, or a cotton ball covered in silk, to put ink on the fabric or paper to produce the print. This method requires more skill and great care needs to be taken when pulling the paper off the fish so the paper doesn't tear. In the direct method, the artist paints directly on the fish, and then gently presses the moist fabric or paper into the fish. With both of these methods, no two prints are exactly alike, but both reveal dramatic images of the fish. For the final touch, the artist uses a chop, or a stamp, and signs their work, and can hold it up to say, "The fish was exactly this big!"
你抓到的魚有多大? 這麼大? 這麼大? 還是這麼大? 沒有照片當證據 你就沒辦法證明你抓了一條大魚 自人類捕魚以來,一直都是如此 事實上,幾百年前 早在照片可捕捉瞬間前 日本漁民就發明了 一套自己的方法 來記錄值得炫耀的戰利品 他們把這技術叫魚拓 (Gyotaku) 魚拓,是把魚拓印下來的古老藝術 發源自日本 用來記錄特殊的漁獲 起源比相機還早 Gyo 的意思是魚 而 taku 的意思是拓印 關於魚拓的由來 有好幾種不同說法 但基本上起源於 一百多年前 漁民需要有方法 來記錄抓到的魚種及大小 漁民會帶著紙、墨汁和毛筆 一同出海 來講述海上的偉大冒險故事 因為日本人崇敬某些魚類 漁民會先將魚拓印起來 再把牠們放走 要製作拓印 漁民會先將魚塗上無毒的墨汁 然後拓印在宣紙上 這樣就可以把魚放回去 或是洗乾淨,再拿去市場賣 像這張早期的魚拓只是用來記錄 並沒有額外的細節資訊 一直到十九世紀中期 漁民才開始在拓印上 畫出眼睛的細節,及其他附加裝飾 有位著名的藩主酒井 是狂熱的捕魚愛好者 有一次他捕到大魚 他想保存 這隻大真鯛的記錄 因此他委託一位漁民幫他拓印 之後許多漁民就會帶著 他們的魚拓來找酒井藩主 如果藩主喜歡他們的作品 就會僱用他們來幫忙製作魚拓 江戶時期,宮殿裡掛著許多魚拓 之後,魚拓就不流行了 開始被淡忘 今日魚拓再度成為一種 流行的藝術形式 受到許多人喜愛 而且據說魚拓會為捕魚者帶來好運 但這藝術形式和昔日有很大的不同 許多現代藝術家由嘗試錯誤中學習 藝術家在開始拓印前 要先把魚準備好 首先,藝術家把魚放在 一個凹陷的平面 接著藝術家把魚鰭張開 用大頭針固定在板子風乾 接著他們用水清洗魚 要拓印時 有兩種不同的方法 「間接法」先將潮濕的布或紙張 用漿糊貼在魚上 接著藝術家會用「拓包」(tompo) ─也就是包了絲綢的棉球─ 沾墨到布料或紙張上拓印 這個方法須要較高的技巧 也要非常小心的 將紙張和魚分離 這樣紙才不會破掉 而用「直接法」 藝術家直接將魚上墨 然後輕輕的將潮濕的布或紙張 壓在魚身上 有了這兩種方法 沒有兩張魚拓會一模一樣 但是都能生動的展現魚的形象 最後一步 藝術家會蓋「印」(chop) 就是印章 然後為作品簽名 接著就可拿著說: 「那條魚就是這麼大!」