It may not be an original painting by Matisse or Rembrandt but it’s certainly an original painting by another artist - a New England Aquarium seal! The seal paints a custom piece of art using a specially adapted brush and flicks of its head or flipper.

This original piece of artwork was painted by Chacoda, who is a male Atlantic harbor seal born in 1995. He was the first seal to paint at the Aquarium. While learning, he got more paint on his brother Reggae than on the canvas. Chacoda is also the grandson of the famous talking seal, Hoover.

Since seals see in only shades of gray, the colors used for this painting were picked for him, and Chacoda combined them in his own unique way.

The New Balance Foundation Marine Mammal Center trainers engage the Aquarium’s seals and sea lions in an enrichment program that gives the animals the opportunity to paint pictures.

Painting Size: 16" x 20"