Wender·Vista
Millau Viaduct
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileFrance
above the Tarn valley in southern France

Millau Viaduct

— — a road on stilts, above the cloud.

— 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 cable-stayed bridge that carries the A75 autoroute across the Tarn valley in the Aveyron, west of the Massif Central. Norman Foster drew the deck; Michel Virlogeux designed the structure. The tallest mast reaches 343 metres, taller than the Eiffel Tower. On a winter morning the road appears to float above the valley cloud, with only the cables and the pylon tops in sight.

from the studio
Millau Viaduct
— bring it home

Millau Viaduct, 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 Millau Viaduct

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 Millau Viaduct carries the A75 autoroute across the Tarn river valley in the département of Aveyron, in southern France's Occitanie region. The cable-stayed bridge is 2,460 metres long, supported by seven pylons; the tallest reaches 343 metres above the valley floor, eclipsing the Eiffel Tower by about twenty metres. It was designed by the French structural engineer Michel Virlogeux and the British architect Norman Foster, built by Eiffage under a concession contract, and opened to traffic on December 14, 2004, in a ceremony led by President Jacques Chirac.

— the air

The Tarn valley fills with low cloud almost every morning between October and April, drawn off the river and held under an inversion layer. The deck of the viaduct sits 270 metres above the valley floor, so on those mornings the road rises clear of the cloud while the towers stand in white air. Drivers describe crossing in fog so total they see only the cables and the strip of asphalt ahead, with the world dropping away on either side. By midday the inversion breaks and the valley reappears.

— informed by Wikipedia
— the visit

A toll plaza sits at the southern end of the viaduct. Cars cross for around €11.90 in the summer high season and €9.60 the rest of the year, with motorbikes about half that. The official visitor centre at the Aire du Viaduc, just off the A75 near Brocuéjouls, runs guided pylon tours from April through October by reservation. The best free public viewpoint is the Point de vue de Brocuéjouls to the west, signed from the village road, with parking and an unobstructed line down the full span.

— where
France · Aveyron, Occitanie
— position
44.0779° N · 3.0228° 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.
4 km SE
Millau
town
25 km S
Roquefort-sur-Soulzon
cheese village
30 km NE
Gorges du Tarn
river gorge
15 km S
Causse du Larzac
limestone plateau
N
Millau Viaduct
Millau
Roquefort-sur-Soulzon
Gorges du Tarn
Causse du Larzac
— common questions

What people ask.

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

The tallest pylon reaches 343 metres above the Tarn valley floor, exceeding the Eiffel Tower by roughly twenty metres. The deck itself sits at 270 metres, making it one of the highest road bridges in the world.

The French structural engineer Michel Virlogeux conceived the cable-stayed form, and the British architect Norman Foster drew the slim deck and tapered pylons. Eiffage built it. The design team won the commission in 1996.

The viaduct opened to traffic on December 14, 2004, in a ceremony led by President Jacques Chirac. Construction took just over three years from the first concrete pour in October 2001.

It crosses the Tarn river valley between the Causse Rouge and the Causse du Larzac, just west of the town of Millau in the département of Aveyron, in the Occitanie region of southern France.

The viaduct runs 2,460 metres from end to end across eight cable-stayed spans. Six middle spans are 342 metres each; the two end spans are slightly shorter. It carries two lanes of motorway in each direction.

Yes. Cars pay around €11.90 in summer and €9.60 the rest of the year at the plaza on the southern end, with discounts for motorbikes and surcharges for trucks. The toll funds the operating concession through 2079.

— about the piece in your home

It carries well for that customer. People who have crossed remember the cables passing overhead and the valley falling away. A Medium or Large in an office or hallway invites the memory without needing explanation.

The artwork's blues and slate greys settle into Mid-Century Modern, Industrial-modern, and Minimalist rooms. It also reads well as a single piece in an architect's office above a drafting bench.

The viaduct is wide, so it benefits from width. A single Large works above a standard sofa; a four-tile Mural carries the full span; a nine-tile Mural makes a strong statement above a console.

Yes, in the Dura Satin or Matte finish. The colour is held inside the ceramic surface, so steam and splashes do not affect it. Reserve Glossy for dry walls away from direct water.

A soft microfibre cloth with plain water handles everyday dust and fingerprints. No abrasive sponges, no ammonia-based cleaners. For stubborn marks, a drop of mild dish soap on the cloth is enough.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is Reid Wender's interpretation of the place, drawn in the studio's stained-glass and alcohol-ink visual language. We are an independent family studio with no third-party licensing.

— if this one stayed with you

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