Wender·Vista
Markham
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileCanada
just north of Toronto, in York Region, Ontario

Markham

— — a small town the city grew around.

— 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 city of about 340,000 in York Region, sitting on the Rouge River just north of Toronto. Main Street Unionville keeps a row of 19th-century clapboard storefronts that the rest of the suburb grew around, and the trail along Toogood Pond carries walkers past the old Stiver Mill. Markham is one of the most diverse municipalities in Canada — more than three quarters of residents identify as a visible minority — and the food along Highway 7 reads as a long quiet argument for that. — from the studio

from the studio
Markham
— bring it home

Markham, 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 Markham

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

Markham sits in York Region, immediately north of Toronto, on the upper reaches of the Rouge River. The 2021 Canadian census recorded a population of 338,503, making it the most populous city in York Region and the sixteenth-largest municipality in Canada. The town was founded in 1794 by Pennsylvania German settlers under William Berczy on land granted by Lieutenant Governor John Graves Simcoe, who named it for the Archbishop of York. It became a city in 2012, the year of its 200th anniversary as a township.

— the stone

Main Street Unionville is the surviving 19th-century core of the old village that Markham grew around. The strip preserves more than a dozen Ontario Gothic and Italianate storefronts from the 1840s to the 1880s, set above the Toogood Pond mill race. The Stiver Mill, built in 1916 as a feed mill, has been restored as a farmers' market and community hall, and Varley Art Gallery on Unionville Main holds work by the Group of Seven painter Frederick Varley, who lived nearby in his last years.

— the year

Markham is one of the most ethnically diverse cities in Canada. The 2021 census recorded 78 percent of residents as visible minorities, with the largest groups Chinese (about 45 percent) and South Asian (about 19 percent). The Pacific Mall on Steeles Avenue claims to be the largest indoor Chinese shopping centre in North America, and the Highway 7 corridor has become one of the country's deepest concentrations of regional Chinese cuisine. Markham is also a corporate base for IBM Canada, AMD, and several Canadian tech firms.

— where
Canada · York Region, Ontario
— elevation
184 m · 604 ft
— position
43.8767° N · 79.2633° 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.
3 km W
Unionville
historic village
30 km SW
Toronto
city
6 km S
Rouge National Urban Park
national park
14 km NE
Stouffville
town
N
Markham
Unionville
Toronto
Rouge National Urban Park
Stouffville
— common questions

What people ask.

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

Markham sits in York Region, Ontario, immediately north of Toronto along the upper Rouge River. It is about 30 kilometres from downtown Toronto by road or GO Transit's Stouffville line.

The 2021 Canadian census recorded a population of 338,503, making Markham the most populous city in York Region and the sixteenth-largest municipality in Canada.

The township was settled in 1794 by Pennsylvania German colonists under William Berczy, on a land grant from Lieutenant Governor John Graves Simcoe. It became a city in 2012.

Unionville is Markham's surviving 19th-century village core, with more than a dozen heritage storefronts on Main Street, the restored 1916 Stiver Mill, and the Varley Art Gallery.

The 2021 census recorded 78 percent of residents as visible minorities, with the largest groups Chinese at about 45 percent and South Asian at about 19 percent of the population.

An indoor shopping centre on Steeles Avenue at Kennedy Road, opened in 1997, that claims to be the largest Chinese indoor shopping centre in North America.

— about the piece in your home

It carries warmly to people who grew up along Main Street Unionville, alumni of Markham's high schools, and recent immigrants for whom the city was a first Canadian home. A Medium tends to land well.

The piece reads well in Mid-century-modern, Japandi, and warm Minimalist rooms. Walnut, brushed brass, and oat linen all sit naturally alongside it.

Yes. The muted greens and warm stone tones pair cleanly with the restrained palettes that anchor contemporary Canadian-modern condos and York Region townhomes.

Above a standard sofa we point people to a single Large, a 4-tile Mural for fuller presence, or a 9-tile Mural when the wall can hold the whole Main Street.

Yes. Order the Dura Satin or Matte finish for vertical installations near steam or splash. The Glossy finish is for framed wall art in drier rooms.

A soft microfibre cloth with plain water is enough. The colour lives in the ceramic surface beneath a thin protective finish, so household sprays and abrasives are not needed.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is original studio work, hand-finished in-house in Knoxville, Tennessee. Nothing is licensed in from outside artists or stock catalogues.

— if this one stayed with you

A few you might also love.

Hand-picked by the eye that found Sorapis. Same air, same kind of quiet.