A 100-metre-long gyotaku, or a type of Japanese fish printing artwork, was finished on Sunday in the Shanghai Ocean Aquarium, which is being prepared to challenge for a Guinness World Record.

Under the direction of Mineo Ryuka Yamamoto, a Japanese fisherman and master gyotaku maker, over 200 visitors to the aquarium took part in the making of the piece on a huge canvas - using hundreds of thousand of scallop-shells in making colorful rubbings of them on the canvas.

Gyotaku, the Japanese "fish printing" art that originally used fresh fish and sea creatures in making paintings by directly color-copying live fish and sea creatures on canvas, or making rubbings of them, can be dated back to the 18th century. It was first developed to preserve a true record of the size and characteristics of fish caught by Japanese anglers.

A 100-metre-long fish printing artwork finished on Sunday in the Shanghai Ocean Aquarium.

Participants to "fish printing" are carefully preparing scallops on Sunday. 
?
(CRI.cn August 7, 2007)