Wender·Vista
Columbia River
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileCanada
the headwaters in British Columbia's Rocky Mountain Trench

Columbia River

— — the river that turns around at the top.

— 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

“The Columbia begins quietly, in a long shallow lake at the south end of British Columbia's Rocky Mountain Trench. It runs north for almost five hundred kilometres before reversing course at the Big Bend and heading south for the United States. Along the way it gathers Kinbasket Lake, the Mica reservoir, and the long arm above Revelstoke. The Selkirks rise on one side, the Rockies on the other.

from the studio
Columbia River
— bring it home

Columbia River, 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 Columbia River

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

The Columbia River rises at Columbia Lake in the southern Rocky Mountain Trench of British Columbia, at roughly 820 m elevation. From source to mouth at Astoria, Oregon, it runs about 2,000 km and drains 670,000 km² across seven U.S. states and one Canadian province. The Canadian reach covers the upper 801 km, flowing north along the Trench to the Big Bend, then south through the Selkirk Mountains and past Revelstoke before crossing the international border below Castlegar into Washington State.

— the water

Three large dams shape the Canadian Columbia. Mica Dam, completed in 1973, holds back Kinbasket Lake and stands 243 m high, one of the tallest earthfill dams in the world. Revelstoke Dam, completed in 1984, sits downstream and feeds the seven-unit Revelstoke Generating Station. Hugh Keenleyside Dam, completed in 1968 above Castlegar, regulates flow across the border under the Columbia River Treaty between Canada and the United States. Together they produce roughly half of British Columbia's electricity.

— informed by BC Hydro
— the season

The Canadian Columbia is open most of the year. The headwater lakes and the long reservoirs freeze along their margins from December through March but rarely close completely. The water runs cleanest and bluest in late summer, August through September, after the Selkirk snowmelt has settled. The road along the Big Bend, Highway 23 north from Revelstoke, runs only as far as Mica Creek and is plowed in winter to the dam. Beyond that point the basin holds only the river, the lakes, and the line of the Trench.

— informed by DriveBC
— where
Canada · East Kootenay and Columbia-Shuswap regions, British Columbia
— elevation
820 m · 2,690 ft
— position
50.2197° N · 115.8442° W
— 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.
at the lake
Revelstoke
river city
at the lake
Golden
confluence town
at the lake
Invermere
lakeside town
at the lake
Nakusp
Arrow Lakes town
at the lake
Castlegar
border city
N
Columbia River
Revelstoke
Golden
Invermere
Nakusp
Castlegar
— common questions

What people ask.

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

The Columbia rises at Columbia Lake in the southern Rocky Mountain Trench of British Columbia, at about 820 m elevation, near the town of Canal Flats. From there it flows north along the Trench for almost five hundred kilometres.

From source to mouth at Astoria, Oregon, the Columbia runs about 2,000 km. The Canadian portion covers the upper 801 km, from Columbia Lake north to the Big Bend, then south to the international border below Castlegar.

The Big Bend is the sharp reversal in the Columbia's course near Mica, where the river stops flowing north along the Rocky Mountain Trench and turns south through the Selkirks. The Mica Dam now sits across the bend.

Three large dams: Mica (1973), Revelstoke (1984), and Hugh Keenleyside above Castlegar (1968). Together they hold the Kinbasket, Revelstoke, and Arrow reservoirs and produce roughly half of British Columbia's electricity.

A 1961 treaty between Canada and the United States governing flood control and hydroelectric flow on the upper Columbia. It led to the construction of Mica, Duncan, and Hugh Keenleyside Dams and is currently under renegotiation.

Major settlements include Invermere on Windermere Lake, Golden at the confluence with the Kicking Horse, Revelstoke below the dam, Nakusp on Upper Arrow Lake, and Castlegar near the U.S. border.

— about the piece in your home

Yes. The upper Columbia is the spine of British Columbia's southeastern interior, and residents of Revelstoke, Golden, Invermere, and Nakusp recognise the river immediately. A Medium or Large with a handwritten studio note carries well.

The river blues, granite greys, and dark conifer greens sit well in Mountain-modern, Pacific-Northwest cabin, and Scandinavian-minimalist rooms. The palette holds up against natural wood and slate without fighting them.

Yes. Mountain-modern continues to favour cool earth tones, water imagery, and the visual vocabulary of the inland ranges. The upper Columbia, with its trench geometry and dam-held reservoirs, fits the style directly.

A single Large reads cleanly above a standard three-seat sofa. The 4-tile Mural carries the river bend across a wider wall, and the 9-tile Mural suits a stairwell or a tall room.

Yes, with the Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and handle the humidity of a bath wall or the splash zone behind a sink without affecting the colour.

A soft microfibre cloth and clean water. No solvents, no abrasive pads, no glass cleaner. The colour lives in the surface, so normal cleaning will not lift it.

Yes. Every WenderVista tile is original to our studio in Knoxville, Tennessee. We do not license outside artwork or resell stock images. Reid Wender curates and paints the atlas, one place at a time.

— if this one stayed with you

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