Gyotaku by Naoki

My introduction to Gyotaku by Naoki was when a friend of ours gifted us a print of an arowana after our own arowana (known affectionately as Aji — short for Ajinomoto) passed away. The print was a real beauty and we displayed it proudly in our home. According to Naoki, gyotaku is a time honored, traditional Japanese art, that is captured on a piece of shoji paper for the keepsake of the family, and friends, and fishers to come.
Fast forward some years and two kids later: I am searching the internet for vendors for my son’s first birthday party. I had already booked tattoos, a balloon artist, a Japanese candy maker, and the Lego Man. I came upon Gyotaku by Naoki’s website because he offers a birthday party service where Gyotaku prints can be made on tshirts. It didn’t come cheap, but it would make for a wonderful parting gift for the children.
His staff did a wonderful job at my son’s party, patiently listening to all the children’s requests for fish colors and placement on the shirt. I’ve been to two more parties that have used Gyotaku by Naoki and the most recent Naoki was printing the shirts himself. It was very cool because we could request for our tshirts to be signed.
The only con in having Gyotaku by Naoki at a party is the very long line you will have to wait in for your tshirt prints. I think it’d be wise for the company or the host to develop some sort of number system so guests can secure a place in line, but wait for their turn while enjoying the party. Perhaps, some sort of discreet sign to let guests know what number they are working on. Or maybe, assign order by table. Trust me, party planners.
Cost of the birthday party service is on the website.

It was such a pleasure to meet Naoki today. Hes a very nice and humble man. I could really tell that he’s puts so much effort into his paintings because he really tries to put life into it, which I really like.
I came in for the first time today to print my boyfriends 32lb ulua, and it was a great experience to watch how it’s prepared and how they print the fish.
His shop is very nice too. He has a little gallery room where all his masterpieces are, and I think he custom makes koa/​mohagany frames!
I would recommend Naoki to print anyone’s fish. You would get your money’s worth!

We had the pleasure of meeting Naoki at the Ocean Expo this year. After searching and searching for a gyotaku artist to purchase art from, it was a delight that he was show casing his work at this expo. We talked story with him for about half an hour without even noticing it! He is such a wonderful, down to earth man who truly understands and loves the ocean. This all translates so beautifully into his artwork which is breathtaking to say the least.
We were on the verge of purchasing his art work but decided that if we didn’t catch anything worth printing before we left hawaii that we would definitely purchase something. Low and behold 3 months later my husband makes his first big catch! We immediately rush and call Naoki on this Friday night at 8 PM, and he told us to keep the fish on ice and he would meet us at his studio the next day. He seemed just as excited as we were, and told us to bring our cameras and that we could document the whole process!
Naoki was just as friendly as the first time, taking in the fishes story and showing us some of his other work. After hearing the story he proceeded to print the fish and talked us through all the steps. It was so amazing to see an artist in his element! After the fish was printed he collected our information and told us it would be a couple weeks.
When we finally got the call from Naoki we were both excited to see the final result. Naoki’s studio closes at 3 and I called to tell him I was getting off work and he gracefully waited for me to arrive at his studio. Upon arriving, I saw the art work and it was STUNNING to say the very least. He brought the fish back to life with all the details and subtle coloring. He then asked me if I was going to get it framed, and I told him I was going to do that right after, but he informed me that they made frames in house! After chatting about the materials he told me to come back in an hour and BOOM a custom made frame for our gyotaku was made! All in all the price was much cheaper than I expected for such high quality work. I could not be happier with the result and we cannot wait to catch more fish for him to print. Naoki is a true artist and the ONE AND ONLY person you should go to in Hawaii for Gyotaku!

Naoki is a great guy and he loves what he does and it shows. He told us that each print has its own story and so with the print that we purchased, we learned of its story. If you ever have a catch that you would like made into a print in order to preserve the «Story» give Naoki a call and make arrangements to bring it in. It’ll become a treasure of a lifetime. Take a look at his website and if you ever have a chance to see/​meet him in person, do it.

I had Naoki’s company come to my son’s 1^st birthday party to print t-​shirts. Each child received one as a goodie bag. The staff (2) came on time and set up. They brought 4 fish with them and about 5 colors to print the fish with. The children got to choose their fish and colors and the staff printed them on the shirts (front, back or wrap around).
The 2 staff members were extremely patient, friendly and worked really well with the children. They never seemed in a hurry at all.
I would highly recommend this. It’s a little pricey but I did it in lieu of a goodie bag and it saved me so much hassle of buying all of the «stuff», assembly, lugging things to the party, etc.
The pricing is a lump sum for the first batch of shirts and a per piece over that amount. They can also sell to others on the spot if you ask for that. We allowed it since I knew adults would also be interested in it (and they were). It kept guests interested and entertained!

We bought a few original painting from Naoki he is the most reasonable price that you could ever find on the Island. His prints is really nice and affordable that’s all I could say… great for christmas gifts!