Wender·Vista
Icaria
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileGreece
in the eastern Aegean, west of Samos

Icaria

— — an island that keeps its own hours.

— 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 long, narrow island in the eastern Aegean, west of Samos, named for the boy who fell from the sky nearby. The spine of Mount Atheras runs the length of it and the villages cling to the slopes above small harbours like Armenistis and Evdilos. Icaria is one of the five Blue Zones where people live unusually long lives. Shops open late. Dinners run later. The clock on the wall is mostly a suggestion.

from the studio
Icaria
— bring it home

Icaria, 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 Icaria

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

Icaria, in modern Greek Ikaria, is an island of roughly 255 square kilometres in the eastern Aegean, about 19 kilometres west of Samos. It belongs to the North Aegean region and to the Icaria regional unit. The 2021 census recorded a resident population of about 8,400, spread across small villages on the slopes of Mount Atheras, which rises to 1,037 metres above the sea. The main port is Agios Kirykos, and the second harbour Evdilos lies on the north coast.

— informed by Wikipedia — Icaria
— the year

Icaria is one of the five places identified by the Blue Zones project as having unusually high rates of healthy longevity. National Geographic and the demographer Michel Poulain helped define the zone in the late 2000s. Summer panigyria, the all-night village feasts tied to saints' days, run through July and August in mountain villages like Christos Raches and Karavostamo. The famous Raches shops, which open in the evening and close around dawn, are real and still trade on the village square.

— informed by Blue Zones — Ikaria
— the water

Therma, just east of Agios Kirykos, takes its name from the radon-bearing hot springs that have drawn bathers since antiquity. The Strabo and Roman-era baths are still in partial use today through a small modern spa. The north coast around Armenistis holds the long sand beach of Livadi and the smaller bay of Nas at the mouth of the Halaris gorge, where a temple to Artemis Tauropolos stood in the classical period. The water around the island is deep and clean, and the wind picks up most afternoons.

— where
Greece · Ikaria, North Aegean
— position
37.6000° N · 26.1667° 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.
at the lake
Agios Kirykos
port town
41 km N
Evdilos
harbour village
57 km NW
Armenistis
fishing village
19 km E
Samos
neighbouring island
N
Icaria
Agios Kirykos
Evdilos
Armenistis
Samos
— common questions

What people ask.

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

In the eastern Aegean Sea, about 19 kilometres west of Samos, in the North Aegean region of Greece. The island is long and narrow, roughly 255 square kilometres in area.

It takes its name from Icarus of Greek myth, the boy who flew too close to the sun and fell into the sea nearby. The body of water around the island is still called the Icarian Sea.

Yes. It is one of the five places identified by the Blue Zones project as having unusually high rates of healthy longevity, alongside Sardinia, Okinawa, Nicoya in Costa Rica, and Loma Linda in California.

Mount Atheras, also called Pramnos, rises to 1,037 metres and runs the length of the island as its spine. The villages climb its slopes above the coast.

By ferry from Piraeus, Mykonos and the other east Aegean islands, or by a short flight from Athens to the small airport near Agios Kirykos. Ferries call at both Agios Kirykos and Evdilos.

All-night village feasts tied to saints' days, held mostly in July and August in mountain villages like Christos Raches. They are open to anyone passing through and are a core piece of island life.

— about the piece in your home

Often yes. Icaria carries a particular weight for the longevity story and for the diaspora from the island. A Small or Medium with a handwritten note from the studio carries warmly.

The blue-and-stone palette suits Coastal-modern, Greek-island, and warm Mediterranean rooms. It also sits well in a Minimalist white-and-oak kitchen against a wood console or open shelf.

It fits the slow-living direction in kitchens and reading rooms — quiet imagery, natural palette, no slogans. The Blue Zone association quietly reinforces that without leaning on it.

Above a sofa, a single Large or a four-tile Mural carries the wall. Above a console, a Medium holds the eye. For a long hall, a nine-tile Mural reads from across the room.

Yes. Order the Dura Satin or Matte finish for any wet or high-touch wall. Both are scratch-resistant and steam-tolerant. The Glossy finish is for framed wall art in dry rooms.

A soft microfibre cloth and water. No abrasives, no ammonia, no bleach. The colour is infused into the ceramic surface and will not lift with normal cleaning.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is original to our studio in Knoxville, Tennessee. Nothing is licensed and nothing is reproduced from another artist. The eye behind the atlas is Reid Wender's.

— 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.