Raku is a type of pottery that originated in Japan and is traditionally used in Japanese tea ceremonies, most often in the form of chawan tea bowls. It is characterised by being hand-built and fired at a low temperature, and then removed from the kiln while still glowing red hot and placed in a container with combustible materials, such as sawdust or newspaper, which ignite and create a reduction atmosphere that affects the colors in glazes and clay bodies. The drastic thermal shock also produces cracking, known as crackling since it is deliberate. The original Japanese style of raku is an outgrowth from Buddhist influences in life and especially in the tea ceremony.

In the 20th century, a Western version of raku was developed by studio potters, which involves firing wares at a high temperature and then placing them in an open-air container filled with combustible material, which is not a traditional Raku practice in Japan. The Western process can give a great variety of colors and surface effects, making it very popular with studio and amateur potters. Unlike traditional Japanese raku, which is mainly hand-built bowls of modest design, Western raku tends to be vibrant in color and comes in many shapes and sizes.

Raku is a unique form of pottery making, and what makes it unique is the range of designs that can be created by simply altering certain factors such as the type of clay, glaze, and firing process.