Finding cultural resonance with printmaking

Shanhaijing (The Classic of Mountains and Seas), a pre-Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC) foundational text of Chinese mythology, catalogs several mythological creatures that combine the bodies of birds and fish — some considered positive symbols and others bad omens. For example, the wenyao fish is a celestial beast with a carp’s body and avian wings, and the text records that it flies at night and its appearance heralds a bumper harvest.