Wender·Vista
Qiqihar
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tilePeople's Republic of China
in Heilongjiang, on the Songnen plain of north-east China

Qiqihar

— a wetland the cranes come back to.

— 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 on the Songnen plain of Heilongjiang, founded in 1691 as a Qing garrison on the Nen River. The reason most travellers know the name is Zhalong, the reed marsh on the city's south-east edge where the red-crowned crane still nests in numbers. The cranes leave for the Yellow Sea coast in October; the river freezes hard in December and stays frozen until March.

from the studio
Qiqihar
— bring it home

Qiqihar, 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 Qiqihar

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

Qiqihar lies in western Heilongjiang Province on the north bank of the Nen River, where the river crosses the Songnen plain. It was founded as a garrison town of the Qing dynasty in 1691 and served as the provincial capital of Heilongjiang from 1699 until 1954. The prefecture-level city today covers roughly 42,500 square kilometres with a population near 5.3 million across seven urban districts and eight surrounding counties. The name comes from a Daur word meaning a natural boundary or border outpost.

— informed by Wikipedia: Qiqihar
— the water

Zhalong National Nature Reserve sits about 30 kilometres south-east of the city, covering 210,000 hectares of reed marsh fed by the Wuyur River. It is the principal breeding ground of the red-crowned crane, one of the rarest cranes in the world, and also hosts white-naped cranes, hooded cranes and over 260 other bird species. The reserve was designated a national reserve in 1979 and added to the Ramsar list of wetlands of international importance in 1992.

— the season

Qiqihar runs a continental cold winter: January averages around minus 19 degrees Celsius, the Nen River freezes hard from early December into March, and the cranes leave Zhalong for the Yellow Sea coast in October and return in late March. Summer is short and warm, with July averaging around 23 degrees, and brings most of the year's 420 millimetres of precipitation. The working window for the cranes is April through September; for the frozen river, January and February.

— where
People's Republic of China · Qiqihar prefecture, Heilongjiang
— position
47.3543° N · 123.9178° 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.
30 km SE
Zhalong National Nature Reserve
wetland reserve
2 km S
Longsha Park
city park
1 km W
Nen River
river
2 km S
Bukui Mosque
Qing-era mosque
N
Qiqihar
Zhalong National Nature Reserve
Longsha Park
Nen River
Bukui Mosque
— common questions

What people ask.

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

Qiqihar sits in western Heilongjiang Province in north-east China, on the north bank of the Nen River across the Songnen plain. The prefecture covers about 42,500 square kilometres with around 5.3 million people.

Zhalong National Nature Reserve, on the city's south-east edge, is the principal breeding ground of the red-crowned crane. It covers 210,000 hectares of reed marsh and was added to the Ramsar list in 1992.

The city was founded as a Qing dynasty garrison in 1691 and served as Heilongjiang's provincial capital from 1699 to 1954. Zhalong was designated a national nature reserve in 1979.

January averages around minus 19 degrees Celsius. The Nen River freezes from early December through March, and the surrounding wetlands hold snow for most of that window.

Red-crowned cranes are present at Zhalong from late March, when they return from the Yellow Sea coast, through October. April through September is the working window for visitors.

— about the piece in your home

Yes. The tile names a specific city and wetland rather than a generic crane image. A Small or Medium works for a home; a Coaster suits a desk in a Beijing or Shanghai office.

The cooler palette sits with Sinophile interiors, scholar-style studies, and warm minimalist rooms with stone and unfinished wood. It also pairs with birding and natural-history collections.

A single Large above a console; a four-tile or nine-tile Mural above a sofa. The Medium is the common gift size for a mantle or shelf.

Yes. Order the Dura Satin or Matte finish for humidity and scratch resistance. Either suits a bathroom wall or a kitchen backsplash.

A soft microfibre cloth and water. The colour lives in the surface, so household cleaners are not needed and abrasive sponges should be avoided.

Yes. The piece is original to the studio, made in Knoxville, Tennessee, in our distinctive stained-glass and alcohol-ink visual language. It is not licensed from a third party.

— if this one stayed with you

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