She then places the fish on her work table, inks it with a brush and painstakingly covers it with another piece of paper, pressing down until it absorbs the fish’s form and texture. In the past month, Victoria, an expert in paper and the director of the Capellades Paper Mill Museum, has repeated this action with some 50 species sold at the Market. It is part of the original project “The Fish of Mercabarna: A Bestiary of the Sea”, which sets out to create a catalogue of Market products, using the curious printing system known as Gyotaku.

Originating in the mid-19th century, the technique was employed by Japanese fishermen to promote the different fish they sold in their stalls.
Mercabarna and its wholesale businesses are collaborating by supplying the different fish species needed to complete the project, which will culminate in an exhibition at the Food Unit.