Wender·Vista
Elba
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileItaly
off the Tuscan coast, in the Ligurian Sea

Elba

— — the island the emperor was sent to forget on.

— 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 granite-and-limestone island in the Tuscan Archipelago, ten kilometres off the mainland at Piombino. Napoleon was held here from May 1814 until he slipped away in February 1815, governing a small empire of vineyards and iron mines for nine months. Mount Capanne rises above the western half. The water along the south coast is the colour the Mediterranean is supposed to be in postcards.

from the studio
Elba
— bring it home

Elba, 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 Elba

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

Elba is the largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago, lying about ten kilometres off the Italian mainland in the Ligurian Sea between the coast of Tuscany and the island of Corsica. The island runs roughly twenty-nine kilometres east to west and rises to 1,019 metres at Mount Capanne in the west. Portoferraio, on the north coast, is the main town and ferry port, reached in about an hour from Piombino. The whole island falls within the Tuscan Archipelago National Park, established in 1996.

— informed by Wikipedia
— the year

Napoleon Bonaparte arrived at Portoferraio on May 4, 1814, after his abdication at Fontainebleau, and was granted sovereignty over Elba under the Treaty of Fontainebleau. For the next nine months he reformed the island's iron mining, reorganized its small army, and lived between the Villa dei Mulini in the upper town and the Villa San Martino in the hills outside it. He sailed for France on February 26, 1815, beginning the Hundred Days that ended at Waterloo in June.

— informed by Napoleon on Elba
— the visit

Elba is reached by ferry from Piombino on the mainland, with crossings to Portoferraio running roughly hourly in summer and taking about an hour. A small airport at Marina di Campo handles seasonal flights from Northern Europe. Both of Napoleon's residences are open to visitors as state museums, and the Capanne cable car climbs from Marciana to the summit ridge for a view across to Corsica on clear days. The island's iron mines at Rio Marina, worked since Etruscan times, now house a mineralogical museum.

— where
Italy · Province of Livorno, Tuscany
— within
Tuscan Archipelago National Park
— position
42.8186° N · 10.3303° 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.
10 km NE
Piombino
mainland ferry port
14 km S
Pianosa
archipelago island
37 km NW
Capraia
archipelago island
50 km W
Corsica
French island
N
Elba
Piombino
Pianosa
Capraia
Corsica
— common questions

What people ask.

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

For Napoleon's exile. After his abdication in April 1814, the Treaty of Fontainebleau gave him sovereignty over Elba; he ruled the island from May 1814 until he escaped to France in February 1815.

In the Ligurian Sea, about ten kilometres off the Tuscan coast at Piombino, and roughly fifty kilometres east of Corsica. It is the largest island in the Tuscan Archipelago.

About 224 square kilometres, twenty-nine kilometres east to west and nineteen north to south. The highest point is Mount Capanne in the west, at 1,019 metres.

Most travelers take the car ferry from Piombino on the Tuscan mainland to Portoferraio; the crossing runs about an hour and operates hourly in summer. A small seasonal airport at Marina di Campo serves Northern European routes.

The medieval upper town of Portoferraio, the iron-mining quarter at Rio Marina, the granite quarries of Mount Capanne, the beaches at Sansone and Fetovaia, and the inland villages of Marciana Alta and Capoliveri.

Late May through June, and September. July and August bring crowds from the Italian mainland and the warmest sea, but also the highest prices and the busiest ferries. Winter is quiet and many hotels close.

— about the piece in your home

Yes. The piece has been a thoughtful gift for Italian-American families with Tuscan roots, for sailors who have cruised the archipelago, and for readers of Napoleonic history. A Small or Medium with a studio note pairs well.

The Mediterranean blue and limestone register sits well in coastal-Italian interiors, plaster-and-terracotta rooms, and Mediterranean modern living spaces. Less natural fit for cool Scandinavian palettes.

Yes. Italian-coastal design leans on hand-finished surfaces, warm whites, soft blues, and pieces that read as collected from the place. The slow ceramic finish carries that note over a printed poster.

A single Large reads cleanly over a console or reading chair. Above a standard sofa a 4-tile Mural fills the wall well, and a 9-tile Mural is the room-defining choice.

Yes, ordered in Dura Satin or Matte. Both finishes are scratch-resistant and humidity-stable, suitable for a powder-room wall, a kitchen backsplash, or a shower surround.

A soft microfibre cloth with plain water is enough. The colour is slowly infused into the ceramic surface beneath a thin glossy finish, so household cleaners and harsher solvents are unnecessary.

Yes. Every WenderVista painting is made in-house by Reid Wender, the curator, and hand-finished in our Knoxville studio. We do not license outside artwork.

— 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.
— a collection

The Italian Dolomites,
painted slow.

The valleys between Cortina and Val Gardena, the tarns you walk an hour to see, the towers that turn the colour of a banked fire just before dark. Wander the collection by valley, by season, or follow the path Reid walked.

Tre Cime
Braies
Misurina
Sorapis
Cinque Torri
Sassolungo
Marmolada