Wender·Vista
Lord Howe Island
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileAustralia
in the Tasman Sea, about 600 kilometres east of the New South Wales coast

Lord Howe Island

— — the green spine in an empty blue sea.

— 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

“A crescent of volcanic green in the Tasman Sea, two hours by Dash 8 from Sydney. Mount Gower rises 875 metres straight out of the lagoon, and Ball's Pyramid stands on the horizon like a sail. The island caps tourist numbers at 400 at a time, so the lanes stay quiet. Cyclists nod going the other way and the southerly wind keeps the air clear. — from the studio

from the studio
Lord Howe Island
— bring it home

Lord Howe Island, 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 Lord Howe Island

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

Lord Howe Island lies in the Tasman Sea, about 600 kilometres east of Port Macquarie on the New South Wales coast, at latitude 31.5 south. It is the eroded remnant of a shield volcano that erupted around seven million years ago. The island is roughly 11 kilometres long and 2 kilometres at its widest, with Mount Gower rising to 875 metres at the southern end. The UNESCO World Heritage Committee inscribed the island and its lagoon in 1982 on the basis of outstanding natural value.

— the silence

The island caps total tourist numbers at 400 at any one time, a limit set by the Lord Howe Island Board and enforced through accommodation licensing. There are no traffic lights, no chain shops, and a speed limit of 25 kilometres an hour along the central road. Most visitors travel by bicycle. Phone signal is patchy outside the settlement, and the lagoon is closed to motorised craft above a small horsepower threshold. Evenings on the lagoon are still enough to hear the surf on the outer reef.

— informed by Lord Howe Island Tourism
— the visit

Access is by Dash 8 turboprop from Sydney, Brisbane or, in season, Port Macquarie, with QantasLink the sole operator. The airstrip is short and flights are weather-dependent, so a buffer day each side is wise. Mount Gower can be climbed only with a licensed guide; the eight-hour return walk crosses fixed ropes and ends on a misty cloud-forest summit. The Ned's Beach reef is wadeable and reef-safe sunscreen is required. Accommodation must be booked before arrival because of the visitor cap.

— where
Australia · Unincorporated, New South Wales
— within
Lord Howe Island Permanent Park Preserve
— position
-31.5553° S · 159.0822° 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.
23 km SE
Ball's Pyramid
volcanic sea stack
7 km S
Mount Gower
peak
2 km NE
Ned's Beach
reef beach
5 km N
Admiralty Islands
islet group
N
Lord Howe Island
Ball's Pyramid
Mount Gower
Ned's Beach
Admiralty Islands
— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Lord Howe Island — and about bringing the piece home.
— about the place

By QantasLink Dash 8 turboprop from Sydney year-round, with additional services from Brisbane and seasonally from Port Macquarie. There is no ferry and no private-boat anchorage for casual visitors. Flight time from Sydney is about two hours.

The Lord Howe Island Board caps total tourist numbers at 400 at any one time, enforced through accommodation licensing. The cap protects the World Heritage values inscribed by UNESCO in 1982, including the lagoon, the cloud forest and the seabird colonies.

A 562-metre volcanic sea stack about 23 kilometres southeast of Lord Howe, the tallest stack of its kind in the world. It is the last refuge of the Lord Howe Island stick insect, rediscovered there in 2001 after presumed extinction.

875 metres at the southern end of the island. The summit holds a small remnant cloud forest with endemic plants and the breeding ground of the providence petrel, which can be called down by name during the season.

Permanent European settlement began in 1834, when three families established a provisioning station for whaling ships crossing the Tasman. Lieutenant Henry Lidgbird Ball charted the uninhabited island in 1788; no earlier resident population has been confirmed.

— about the piece in your home

Yes. The piece carries the lagoon blue and the dark volcanic green of the island and has been a meaningful gift for returning visitors and for Sydney families who holiday there. A Medium or Large works well.

It sits naturally in Coastal-modern, Pacific-modern and biophilic interiors. The deep teal and forest palette pairs with bleached oak, raw linen and rattan. It also holds its own against a charcoal feature wall in a darker study.

Yes. The biophilic shift toward deep-water blues and rainforest greens, away from beige coastal palettes, runs through this piece. It sits well alongside indoor ferns, woven seagrass and unfinished oak.

Above a standard sofa, a single Large or a four-tile Mural reads at the right proportion. A nine-tile Mural fills a longer wall above a dining sideboard. A Medium suits a narrow entryway console.

Yes. Choose the Dura Satin or Matte finish for any vertical install in a wet room or behind a stove. The colour is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure and resists steam and routine cleaning.

A soft microfibre cloth with plain water is enough for routine cleaning. For kitchen installs, a drop of mild dish soap on the cloth removes cooking residue. Avoid abrasive pads and any cleaner containing bleach or solvent.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is original to the studio in Knoxville and not licensed from any outside source. Reid Wender curates each place that enters the atlas and approves the artwork before it ships.

— if this one stayed with you

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