shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileIndia

on the Tapi River in southern Gujarat, near the Arabian Sea

Surat

— — the city that cuts the world's diamonds.

— 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

— 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 city sits on the Tapi where the river bends toward the Arabian Sea, fourteen kilometres inland. Nine out of every ten diamonds traded in the world pass through its cutting houses. The old Mughal port walls still face the river, and the Hira Bourse on the city's edge is the largest office building on earth by floor area.

from the studio

— bring it home

Surat, 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 Surat

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

Surat lies on the south bank of the Tapi River in the Indian state of Gujarat, about fourteen kilometres upstream from where the river enters the Arabian Sea at the Gulf of Khambhat. The city of around 4.5 million is the second-largest in Gujarat after Ahmedabad and the eighth-largest in India, with the wider metropolitan area approaching 7 million. The Tapi flows roughly 724 kilometres from the Satpura range in Madhya Pradesh; Surat is the largest city on its banks and one of the oldest deep-water ports on India's western coast.

— informed by Wikipedia – Surat

— the stone

Surat cuts and polishes roughly nine out of every ten diamonds traded in the world by volume. The trade is anchored at the Surat Diamond Bourse in Khajod, opened in 2023 and certified by Guinness as the largest office building on earth by floor area, surpassing the Pentagon. Alongside diamonds, Surat is the country's largest centre for man-made textiles, producing an estimated 40 million metres of fabric a day across its mills and powerlooms.

— informed by Wikipedia – Surat Diamond Bourse

— the year

Surat Castle was built in 1546 by Khudawand Khan under Sultan Mahmud Shah III of Gujarat, against Portuguese raids from the sea. The English East India Company established its first Indian factory here in 1612, and the Dutch and Armenian cemeteries on the city's eastern edge preserve their merchant communities' tombs. The city was struck by plague in 1994 and by flood in 2006; the rebuilding programme afterward, paired with strict sanitation reform, has ranked Surat as India's cleanest large city in repeated Swachh Survekshan years.

— informed by Wikipedia – Surat Castle

— where

India · Surat district, Gujarat

— elevation

13 m · 43 ft

— position

21.1702° N · 72.8311° 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.

1 km N

Tapi River

river

1 km N

Surat Castle

fort

2 km E

Dutch Cemetery

historic cemetery

15 km SE

Surat Diamond Bourse

trade complex

16 km SW

Dumas Beach

beach

260 km N

Ahmedabad

city

Surat

Tapi River

Surat Castle

Dutch Cemetery

Surat Diamond Bourse

Dumas Beach

Ahmedabad

— common questions

What people ask.

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

— about the place

On the south bank of the Tapi River in the Indian state of Gujarat, about fourteen kilometres upstream from where the river meets the Arabian Sea at the Gulf of Khambhat.

Around 90 percent of the world's diamonds by volume are cut and polished in Surat. The trade is anchored at the Surat Diamond Bourse in Khajod, opened in 2023.

A trade complex on Surat's southeastern edge, certified by Guinness in 2023 as the largest office building on earth by floor area, surpassing the Pentagon.

Surat Castle was built in 1546, but the port is older. The English East India Company established its first Indian factory here in 1612, and Mughal-era trade records reference the harbour earlier still.

Synthetic textiles, on a scale rare in India. The city's mills and powerlooms produce an estimated 40 million metres of fabric a day, alongside zari embroidery and chemical industries at Hazira.

Surat ranked first in the Swachh Survekshan national sanitation survey in 2023, after sustained reform that followed the 1994 plague outbreak and the 2006 Tapi flood.

— about the piece in your home

For someone from the diamond or textile trades, or with roots along the Tapi, Surat is the home city. A Small or Medium with a handwritten studio note carries well.

The river greens, gold, and warm sandstone tones settle into Indian-modern, jewel-tone Maximalist, and warm-earth Minimalist rooms. It reads well against natural wood and brass.

A single Large suits most sofas. For a wider wall, a four-tile Mural extends the river. For a long console, a nine-tile Mural reads as a slow Tapi panorama.

Yes, with the Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and handle steam and splash. The Glossy finish is reserved for framed wall pieces in dry rooms.

A microfibre cloth and water. Nothing else. No solvents, no abrasives, no glass cleaner. The colour lives in the ceramic surface and does not need polishing.

Yes. Every piece is curated by Reid Wender and finished in our Knoxville studio. The visual language is ours alone, with no outside licensing.

— if this one stayed with you