Fire and water, earth and air, are the elements that make up the magical process of raku creating dazzling metallic iridescent reds, blues, greens and purples on  this sea otter. Depending upon the amount of oxygen during the firing process and carbons created in the smoking post-firing reduction, different colours will appear in different areas of one piece.

With the return of the sea otters to our coastal regions, these sea mammals are now regularly spotted up and down the BC coast in large groups called 'rafts', smaller groups, and sometimes alone. 

A sea otter will float on its back with a rock on its chest, as well as the food it has harvested while diving. Otters will cleverly use the rock, for a tool, to open food such as crabs, clams, mussels and urchins.  If the shellfish is hard to open, the otter will smash it on the rock.