Wender·Vista
Yerevan
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileArmenia
on the Hrazdan River, with Mount Ararat to the south

Yerevan

— — the city the colour of dawn on tuff stone.

— Where it lives

Not only on a wall.

A small tile on the nightstand catching the morning. A larger one above the fire. Yours, wherever you spend the slow hours.
— On the nightstand, a 6-inch on a walnut stand
— Among the books, a 6-inch leaning into the spines
— Beside the kettle, a 12-inch propped
— Down a quiet hall, an 18-inch floating off the wall
— Above the fire, the 24-inch in a walnut surround
— a note from the studio

“One of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, founded in 782 BC as the Urartian fortress of Erebuni by King Argishti I. The buildings are cut from local volcanic tuff in shades of pink, apricot, and grey, which is how Yerevan came to be called the Pink City. Mount Ararat sits on the horizon to the south, across a border Armenians cannot cross to reach it.

from the studio
Yerevan
— bring it home

Yerevan, on ceramic.

Each tile is finished by hand in our Knoxville studio. Artwork is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure, and rests beneath a thin glossy finish. The colour lives in the surface, not on top of it.

What kind of piece?
One tile — square or rectangle.
How big?
the popular one — counter, shelf, nightstand
6 × 6 in · 15 cm · 1.6 lb
Surface finish
A clear glossy finish — the artwork reads as if under resin. Ideal for show-pieces and framed wall art.
How it sits
A hidden cleat — sits ¼″ proud of the wall.
$58
Hand-finished and shipped from our studio at the foot of the Smokies. On your wall in about ten days.
— size
6 × 6 in
15 cm
— weighs
1.6 lb
solid in the hand
— surface
ceramic, hand-finished
art rests beneath a thin glossy finish
— from
Knoxville, TN
our family studio, at the foot of the Smokies
— start a Coaster Set

Pick any four 4-inch tiles — National Parks you've been to, a Smokies set, the four seasons of one place. $ for a set of , cork-backed, ready to live on the table.

— about Yerevan

The place, in three passes.

A little of what's known, in case you fall down the rabbit hole — or want to go see it yourself.
— the place

Yerevan is the capital of Armenia, set on the Hrazdan River at about 990 metres elevation in a basin in the southern Caucasus. The city traces its founding to 782 BC, when King Argishti I of Urartu built the fortress of Erebuni on Arin Berd hill, which makes Yerevan one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. The metropolitan population is around 1.1 million, roughly a third of all Armenians, and the city looks south across the Aras valley toward Mount Ararat.

— the stone

The city's apricot-and-pink colour comes from felsic volcanic tuff quarried in the surrounding region, used for façades since the 1920s when architect Alexander Tamanyan drew up the master plan. Tamanyan's Republic Square, completed in stages through the 1950s, is the centrepiece — five buildings around an oval, all faced in tuff, with the History Museum closing the north end. The stone darkens to rose at sunset, which gave Yerevan its common name, the Pink City.

— the visit

Yerevan is reached through Zvartnots International Airport, about 10 kilometres west of the centre. The Cascade, a tiered limestone stairway designed in the 1970s, climbs from Alexander Tamanyan's statue toward a viewpoint over the city; on a clear morning Mount Ararat fills the southern horizon. The Matenadaran, the national repository of ancient Armenian manuscripts, holds more than 17,000 codices and is open to visitors most days. Spring and autumn are mild; summers reach 35°C and winters drop well below freezing.

— where
Armenia · Yerevan
— elevation
990 m · 3,248 ft
— position
40.1792° N · 44.4991° E
— the neighborhood

What's nearby.

A handful of named places within an hour's walk or short drive. Some we've already painted; some we will.
28 km E
Garni Temple
Hellenistic temple
35 km E
Geghard Monastery
monastery
20 km W
Echmiadzin
cathedral city
60 km NE
Lake Sevan
lake
N
Yerevan
Garni Temple
Geghard Monastery
Echmiadzin
Lake Sevan
— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Yerevan — and about bringing the piece home.
— about the place

Yerevan dates to 782 BC, when King Argishti I of Urartu founded the fortress of Erebuni on Arin Berd hill. This makes it one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, older than Rome.

Most central Yerevan buildings are faced in local volcanic tuff in shades of pink, apricot, and grey. Architect Alexander Tamanyan's 1924 master plan codified the material, and it has defined the city since.

Yes. On clear days Mount Ararat, 5,137 metres, dominates the southern horizon. The mountain lies inside present-day Turkey but is a national symbol of Armenia and appears on the country's coat of arms.

The civic centre of Yerevan, designed by Alexander Tamanyan and built in stages from the 1920s through the 1950s. Five tuff-faced buildings frame an oval plaza, with the History Museum of Armenia closing the north end.

Armenia's national repository of ancient manuscripts, holding more than 17,000 codices and fragments in Armenian, Greek, Syriac, and other languages. It opened on its current Yerevan site in 1959.

May to June and September to October are mild and dry, with daytime temperatures around 18 to 25°C. July and August can reach 35°C, and winters frequently drop below freezing.

— about the piece in your home

It carries well for the Armenian diaspora in Glendale, Boston, Paris, or Beirut, and for anyone with family roots in Yerevan. A Medium with a handwritten note from the studio travels well.

It works in warm earth-tone interiors, traditional Armenian and Middle Eastern rooms, and modern spaces built around natural stone and walnut. The pink-tuff palette also reads well against brass and wool textiles.

Yes, for warm-stone and earth-tone interiors, and for the broader Caucasian and Levantine design influences increasingly visible in contemporary architecture and design press over the past few years.

A single Large reads well above most consoles; a 4-tile Mural fits a standard sofa, and a 9-tile Mural anchors a longer wall above a sectional or king bed.

Yes, with the Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and suited to vertical installations near water; the Glossy finish is reserved for framed wall pieces.

Wipe with a soft microfibre cloth and water. No chemical cleaners are needed; the colour lives in the ceramic surface under the finish and will not fade with cleaning.

Yes. Every piece is curated by Reid Wender and made in our Knoxville studio. We do not license images, and the visual language is not reproduced elsewhere.

— if this one stayed with you

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