Gyotaku Impression taken from the surface of Pacific Oyster Shells

Gyotaku Impression taken from the surface of Pacific Oyster ShellsThe Pacific Oyster is a commonly farmed oyster here in the UK. These shells come from an oyster farm about 7 miles from my studio. Based in the waters of the Menai Strait, Sean and his family farm oysters in this tidal water and they are very popular during the summer here on the Island of Anglesey. Printing from shell is pretty technical as the hard surface can often break the paper as it's pressed over the surface. To print multiple shells is also

the meticulous execution

straightened form that highlights its clean

letting the work dry overnight to ensure durability and smoothness

I have used exactly the same method as I would use to print a fish

archival-quality finish

so I have actually taken 18 prints to make it

Once the print was made

As with all of Jane’s work

The print measures 33cmx53cm approx  It is printed on Chinese Xuan Paper and is printed in high quality acrylic ink which is both light fast and permanent

The paper is Chinese Xuan paper and is around 70cm x 35cm

Like a lobster it's much more 3 dimensional than a fish so there is a lot of work to do making sure things don't slip and slide around

I’ve used a blue and a gold acrylic screen printing ink