Wender·Vista
Fremantle Prison
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileAustralia
on the limestone ridge above Fremantle harbour

Fremantle Prison

— — a wall the convicts cut from the hill they stood on.

— 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

“Six hectares of pale limestone above the Indian Ocean port of Fremantle, quarried and laid by the convicts who would live inside it. The gates closed as a working prison in 1991 and opened as a museum the next year. The cell blocks still smell faintly of lime and salt, and the yard holds the light the way only an old wall does.

from the studio
Fremantle Prison
— bring it home

Fremantle Prison, 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 Fremantle Prison

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

Fremantle Prison stands on a limestone ridge in the port city of Fremantle, about 19 kilometres southwest of Perth on the mouth of the Swan River. It was built between 1851 and 1859 by convicts transported from Britain under the Convict Establishment, and operated as a working prison until its closure on 8 November 1991. The site covers roughly six hectares, with the main cell block, perimeter walls, gatehouse, hospital, and women's division still intact above the harbour.

— the stone

The walls were cut from the limestone hill they stand on. Convicts quarried the stone on site, dressed it, and laid it in courses that still show the chisel marks. The main cell block runs about 137 metres long across four storeys, and the perimeter wall stands roughly five metres high. The same Coogee-style limestone weathers to a soft cream in the strong Western Australian light, and the surface holds the heat of the afternoon long after the sun drops behind the harbour.

— the visit

Fremantle Prison was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2010 as one of eleven Australian Convict Sites. The Prison runs four main tour programs: a Doing Time day tour through the main cells, a Great Escapes tour, a Tunnels tour through the limestone aquifer below the site, and a Torchlight tour after dark. Tours leave from the gatehouse on The Terrace, a five-minute walk from Fremantle station and the Cappuccino Strip on South Terrace.

— where
Australia · Fremantle, Western Australia
— position
-32.0556° S · 115.7536° 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.
1 km W
Fremantle Harbour
port
19 km NE
Perth
city
18 km W
Rottnest Island
island
N
Fremantle Prison
Fremantle Harbour
Perth
Rottnest Island
— common questions

What people ask.

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

Between 1851 and 1859, by convicts transported from Britain under the Western Australian Convict Establishment. It opened to receive prisoners in 1855 and was completed at the end of the decade.

Fremantle Prison ceased operating as a maximum-security prison on 8 November 1991, after the new Casuarina Prison opened south of Perth. It reopened to the public as a heritage site the following year.

It was inscribed in 2010 as one of eleven Australian Convict Sites recognised by UNESCO for their universal significance in the history of forced migration and the colonial transportation system from Britain.

Local Coogee-style limestone, quarried on site by the convicts who would live inside the walls. The cell ranges, perimeter wall, and gatehouse all use the same pale, salt-weathered stone.

Yes. The site runs Doing Time, Great Escapes, Tunnels, and Torchlight tours from the gatehouse on The Terrace. The Tunnels tour descends into the limestone aquifer below the prison and involves ladders and small boats.

About 19 kilometres southwest of central Perth, on the ridge above Fremantle's Indian Ocean port. It is a 30-minute Transperth train ride from Perth Underground to Fremantle station.

— about the piece in your home

Yes. The prison is one of the most recognisable buildings on the Perth coastline, and the limestone glow reads as home to anyone from the western suburbs. A Medium with a handwritten studio note carries well.

The pale stone and stained-glass palette settles into coastal-modern, warm industrial, and gallery-white rooms. It also holds against dark timber panelling and brick in a study or library.

Yes. The limestone tones and the architectural weight of the composition fit the warm industrial direction current in Western Australian design without leaning into the grey concrete cliché.

Above a standard sofa, a single Large or a four-tile Mural holds the wall. Above a narrow console, a Medium centred at eye level is enough. For a feature wall, a nine-tile Mural is the upper end.

Yes, in Dura Satin or Matte. Both finishes resist scratches and humidity. The Glossy finish is for dry display walls or framed pieces away from direct splash.

A soft microfibre cloth and warm water. No abrasive sponges, no ammonia-based sprays. The colour lives in the ceramic surface, so cleaning is the same as caring for any fine tile.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is painted in-house in our Knoxville studio in our stained-glass and alcohol-ink visual language, then slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure.

— if this one stayed with you

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