This, however, is not all that he gains from his forbidden venture into this foreign realm. On his way, he encounters various creatures which, true to Octopus’ word, are indeed different to the creatures of Rainbow Fish’s world but with the kind, willing assistance of one of those strangers, Rainbow fish recovers his shiny scale. Despite this, when one day a strong current pulls off Rainbow Fish’s last shiny scale and carries it over the canyon’s edge into the tantalising depths, curiosity gets the better of the little fish, and now armed with the excuse of finding his lost scale, he succumbs to the lure of the unknown realm. Octopus makes fine work of painting the canyon dwellers in every possible hue of negativity as he tries to dissuade Rainbow Fish from ever venturing into that foreign world. Rainbow Fish is very curious as to what interesting things may be waiting to be discovered deep down in the unfamiliar underwater canyon along the edge of which he often plays with his friends. Marcus and his wife, Kathryn, work together in Berne, where they live with their three children. The foil stamping is then applied during the production process after the pages are printed and before the final binding. When the illustration is complete he cuts the paper from the wooden board.įor books that feature holographic foil stamping, he then tapes a piece of transparent film over the art and indicates with a black marker where the foil stamping should be.

For sharper details, he first lets the paper dry, then paints the final picture layer by layer. For backgrounds and blended contours, he uses wet paint on wet paper to get a softer effect. At this point, he is ready to begin painting. He then copies his rough sketches onto the paper in pencil. He begins each book by stretching watercolor paper over a wooden board so that it won't warp when wet. Marcus does most of his illustrations for children's books in watercolors. His best-known work to date is The Rainbow Fish, which has remained on bestseller lists across the United States since 1992. In 1983, he decided to dedicate more time to artistic pursuits, and began to write and illustrate his first book, The Sleepy Owl, which was published in 1986. Marcus Pfister was born in Berne, Switzerland, and began his career as a graphic artist in an advertising agency.

Rainbow fish to the rescue book