Wender·Vista
Venice
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileItaly
in a lagoon at the head of the Adriatic, north of Ravenna

Venice

— — a city the water keeps and gives back.

— 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

“Venice holds together on 118 small islands in a shallow lagoon at the head of the Adriatic. There are no cars. The Grand Canal makes a long S through the centre, and four hundred-some bridges stitch the rest. In November the water rises in the lower campi and the duckboards come out. By March the tide is back where it lived before. The bells from San Marco carry over the rooftops, then settle on the water.

from the studio
Venice
— bring it home

Venice, 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 Venice

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

Venice is the capital of the Veneto region in northeastern Italy and the seat of a metropolitan area of about 850,000. The historic city covers 118 small islands inside a 550-square-kilometre lagoon at the head of the Adriatic Sea, connected by some 400 bridges and divided by the Grand Canal. About 50,000 people now live in the centro storico, down from roughly 175,000 in the 1950s. The whole of Venice and its lagoon was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.

— the water

Venice is built on millions of alder, oak, and larch piles driven into the lagoon clay; the piles, kept anaerobic by the silt, have held the city up for more than a thousand years. The seasonal high tide called acqua alta floods the lower campi each autumn and winter, peaking most years between October and January. Saint Mark's Square sits at one of the lowest points in the city, around 64 centimetres above mean sea level, and is among the first places the water reaches.

— informed by Wikipedia — Acqua alta
— the stone

Saint Mark's Basilica, consecrated in its present form in 1094, fronts the eastern end of the square with five gilded domes and a façade of marble columns and mosaic. The Doge's Palace beside it is the seat of the former Republic of Venice, rebuilt in pink Verona marble after fires in the 14th and 16th centuries. The Rialto Bridge, designed by Antonio da Ponte and finished in 1591, is the oldest of the four bridges that cross the Grand Canal; it carries shops along both balustrades.

— where
Italy · Venice, Veneto
— elevation
1 m · 3 ft
— position
45.4408° N · 12.3155° 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
Saint Mark's Square
plaza
1 km NW
Rialto Bridge
bridge
7 km NE
Burano
lagoon island
N
Venice
Saint Mark's Square
Rialto Bridge
Burano
— common questions

What people ask.

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

In northeastern Italy, on a shallow lagoon at the head of the Adriatic Sea. The historic city covers 118 islands connected by some 400 bridges, about 4 kilometres off the Veneto mainland.

On millions of wooden piles driven into the lagoon clay below the islands. The piles, kept airless by the silt, have held the city's brick and stone buildings up for more than a thousand years.

Venice's seasonal high tide, when water from the Adriatic floods the lower squares and lanes. It peaks most years between October and January; Saint Mark's Square is among the first places to flood.

Around 400 across the historic city. Only four cross the Grand Canal: the Rialto, the Accademia, the Scalzi, and the Calatrava, listed in order of age.

The present church was consecrated in 1094, replacing two earlier buildings on the same spot. Its five gilded domes and mosaic façade have been added to and restored over many centuries since.

About 50,000 people live in the centro storico, with another 250,000 or so in the lagoon islands and the Mestre mainland. The historic population has fallen from roughly 175,000 in the 1950s.

— about the piece in your home

It has read warmly for customers who have lived in the city or returned to it many times. The canal light and the dome silhouettes are the textures Venetians and devoted visitors recognise. A Medium or Large travels well.

The aqua, gold, and stained-glass blue suit Old World Eclectic rooms, Coastal Modern interiors, and Italianate spaces with plaster, gilt, and dark wood. It reads strongly against a deep teal or warm stone wall.

Yes. Saturated waterborne colour, gilded architectural reference, and lived-in Mediterranean texture are central to the current Old World Eclectic and Italian Revival moments in interiors.

A single Large centres a console well. A 4-tile Mural lifts a sofa wall. A 9-tile Mural reads as a full painting and is the right scale for a larger room or entryway.

Yes, with the Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and built for steam and splash. The Glossy finish is best reserved for drier wall spaces.

A soft microfibre cloth, dry or lightly damp with water. No abrasive pads or chemical cleaners. The colour lives inside the ceramic surface, so routine wiping is enough.

Yes. Every WenderVista tile is made in our Knoxville studio under Reid Wender's eye. No licensing in from outside artists, no stock libraries.

— 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