Wender·Vista
Sant'Ignazio Church
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileItaly
in Rome's Pigna rione, a short walk east of the Pantheon

Sant'Ignazio Church

— the dome that isn't there, painted onto the ceiling.

— 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 Church of Sant'Ignazio di Loyola in Campo Marzio sits on the small Piazza Sant'Ignazio in Rome's Pigna rione, a few minutes' walk east of the Pantheon. Begun in 1626 to honour the founder of the Jesuit order, it carries Andrea Pozzo's trompe-l'œil nave ceiling of 1685. The ceiling shows the painted apotheosis of Saint Ignatius and a famous fictive dome. A brass disc on the floor marks where to stand.

from the studio
Sant'Ignazio Church
— bring it home

Sant'Ignazio Church, 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 Sant'Ignazio Church

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 Church of Sant'Ignazio di Loyola in Campo Marzio stands on Piazza Sant'Ignazio in Rome's Pigna rione, about 250 metres east of the Pantheon. The first stone was laid in 1626 under Cardinal Ludovico Ludovisi, fifteen years after Ignatius of Loyola's canonisation, and the church was consecrated in 1722. It served as the chapel of the adjacent Roman College, the Jesuits' flagship school. The Baroque façade was completed by Alessandro Algardi to a design refined from Orazio Grassi's original plan.

— informed by Wikipedia
— the light

Andrea Pozzo painted the nave vault between 1685 and 1694, an Allegory of the Missionary Work of the Jesuits in which Saint Ignatius is carried into heaven on a beam of light from Christ. A brass disc set into the floor marks the single viewpoint from which the architecture and figures resolve as one continuous illusion. Pozzo also painted the famous fictive dome on flat canvas above the crossing after funds for a real cupola ran out, a trompe-l'œil over 17 metres across.

— the visit

Entry is free. The church opens around 7:30 in the morning and closes about 7 in the evening, with a midday pause on some days. Visitors are asked to keep quiet during the late-afternoon Mass. The famous viewpoint is the brass disc at the centre of the nave. Piazza Sant'Ignazio outside, with Filippo Raguzzini's curved rococo façades of 1727, is one of the smallest and most theatrical squares in Rome. The Pantheon and Trevi are each a five-minute walk away.

— informed by Turismo Roma
— where
Italy · Rome, Lazio
— elevation
20 m · 66 ft
— position
41.8990° N · 12.4790° 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 W
Pantheon
Roman temple
1 km W
Piazza Navona
Baroque public square
1 km E
Trevi Fountain
Baroque fountain
1 km S
Piazza Venezia
central Roman square
N
Sant'Ignazio Church
Pantheon
Piazza Navona
Trevi Fountain
Piazza Venezia
— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Sant'Ignazio Church — and about bringing the piece home.
— about the place

On the small Piazza Sant'Ignazio in Rome's Pigna rione, about 250 metres east of the Pantheon and a short walk north of Piazza Venezia.

Andrea Pozzo painted it between 1685 and 1694. The Allegory of the Missionary Work of the Jesuits resolves by perspective from a single brass disc set into the nave floor.

No. Funds for a true cupola ran out, so Pozzo painted a fictive dome on flat canvas above the crossing. From the correct viewpoint it reads as a deep architectural space.

The first stone was laid in 1626 under Cardinal Ludovico Ludovisi, fifteen years after Ignatius of Loyola's canonisation. The church was consecrated in 1722, with the Algardi façade completed earlier.

Yes, free of charge. Hours are roughly 7:30 to 19:00 with a midday closure on some days. Tourists are asked to stay quiet during the late-afternoon Mass.

— about the piece in your home

Sant'Ignazio is the Jesuit order's mother-house church and a touchstone for Loyola scholars, alumni of Jesuit schools, and longtime Rome residents. A Small or Medium with a handwritten studio note carries well.

The gold leaf, ultramarine, and sienna of the tile suit warm Traditional, Italian-modern, and Maximalist interiors. It also reads well in a chapel corner, a library, or above a small writing desk.

A Large reads above a console. Above a three-seat sofa, a four-tile Mural or nine-tile Mural holds the proportion. For a library wall, a Triptych often works.

Yes, in the Dura Satin or Matte finish, both scratch-resistant and made for vertical installation in showers and backsplashes. The glossy finish is best kept to dry interior walls.

A microfibre cloth and plain water are enough for routine cleaning. Mild dish soap is fine for kitchen splatter. Avoid abrasive pads, bleach, and acidic descalers.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is created and finished in our Knoxville studio under Reid Wender's eye. The Sant'Ignazio tile is not licensed from any other artist or studio.

— 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