Wender·Vista
Vancouver Island
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileCanada
off the southwest coast of British Columbia, across the Strait of Georgia from the mainland

Vancouver Island

— — the coast where the old growth still meets the 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

“The largest island on the Pacific coast of North America, with Victoria at its south end and a long wild edge running northwest toward Cape Scott. The interior is a spine of mountains; the west coast is rainforest, basalt, and surf. Tofino sits where the road runs out. Coaches stop at the pull-offs above Long Beach and people walk down without much talking. from the studio

from the studio
Vancouver Island
— bring it home

Vancouver 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 Vancouver 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

Vancouver Island sits off the southwest coast of British Columbia, separated from the mainland by the Strait of Georgia and from Washington State by the Strait of Juan de Fuca. At roughly 32,100 square kilometres it is the largest island on the Pacific coast of the Americas. Victoria, the provincial capital, anchors the south end; Nanaimo, Courtenay, and Campbell River line the east coast; Tofino and Ucluelet sit on the open Pacific. The island is the traditional territory of the Coast Salish, Nuu-chah-nulth, and Kwakwaka'wakw peoples.

— the water

The west coast of the island faces open Pacific swell with no land between it and Japan, which is why surfers gather at Long Beach near Tofino year-round and storm-watchers come specifically in November. Pacific Rim National Park Reserve protects roughly 510 square kilometres of coastline, including the 75-kilometre West Coast Trail. Inland, the Cowichan and Campbell Rivers carry steelhead and salmon runs that have defined the island's fishing culture for generations.

— the air

Cathedral Grove in MacMillan Provincial Park, on the road between Parksville and Port Alberni, holds Douglas firs over 800 years old and more than nine metres in circumference. The temperate rainforest along the west coast receives more than 3,000 millimetres of rain a year in places, and the canopy traps a moist, mineral air that holds smell and sound. Big-tree biologist Dr. Andy MacKinnon has called this one of the last intact stretches of Pacific old growth.

— informed by BC Parks — MacMillan
— where
Canada · British Columbia, Canada
— within
Pacific Rim National Park Reserve
— position
49.6508° N · 125.4493° 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
Victoria
provincial capital
at the lake
Tofino
west-coast surf town
at the lake
Pacific Rim National Park Reserve
national park reserve
at the lake
Cathedral Grove
old-growth Douglas fir grove
N
Vancouver Island
Victoria
Tofino
Pacific Rim National Park Reserve
Cathedral Grove
— common questions

What people ask.

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

About 32,100 square kilometres, roughly 460 kilometres long and up to 100 kilometres wide. It is the largest island on the Pacific coast of the Americas and the second-most populous Canadian island after the Island of Montreal.

No. The city of Vancouver is on the British Columbia mainland. Vancouver Island lies across the Strait of Georgia, with Victoria as its largest city. A ferry or floatplane connects the two.

Most visitors fly into Victoria or Nanaimo and drive Highway 4 west across the island to the Pacific coast. The drive from Nanaimo to Tofino takes about three hours and crosses Cathedral Grove on the way.

From November through February, Pacific storms regularly bring sustained winds above 90 kilometres per hour to Long Beach and Wickaninnish Bay. Tofino hotels market the season specifically as storm-watching weather.

Significant stands remain at Cathedral Grove, in the Carmanah Valley, around Avatar Grove near Port Renfrew, and within Pacific Rim National Park Reserve. Some Douglas firs and western red cedars exceed 800 years of age.

The island lies within the traditional and unceded territories of the Coast Salish peoples in the south, the Nuu-chah-nulth nations on the west coast, and the Kwakwaka'wakw in the north. Many communities remain active on their territories today.

— about the piece in your home

It carries well for that kind of recipient. The piece reads the island as forest, fog, and west-coast shoreline. A Medium or Large with a handwritten note from the studio is the most often-chosen pairing.

It sits naturally in Pacific Northwest interiors, mountain-modern rooms with cedar and stone, and Japandi spaces with restrained wood tones. The cool greens and basalt blues also work against warm-white walls and pale oak floors.

Yes. The palette of evergreen, fog, and ocean reads as coastal-modern without the saturated turquoise of tropical work, and as biophilic without being literal botanical art.

A single Large covers the wall over a standard sofa. Over a long console or in an entry hall, a four-tile Mural opens the image up; a nine-tile Mural works for a feature wall.

Yes, ordered in Dura Satin or Matte. Both finishes are scratch-resistant and tolerate humidity, so the piece reads well as a backsplash, in a powder room, or on a shower wall.

A dry or barely damp microfibre cloth. The colour is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure and does not lift, fade, or scratch under ordinary cleaning.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is curated by Reid Wender and hand-finished in our Knoxville studio. We do not license artwork from other studios or print partners.

— 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.