Wender·Vista
Kofu
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileJapan
in the Kofu Basin, under the Southern Alps

Kofu

— — the valley Takeda Shingen called home.

— 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 capital of Yamanashi Prefecture, set in a wide basin between the Southern Japanese Alps and the Misaka range, with Mount Fuji rising to the south. Kofu was the seat of the Takeda clan in the sixteenth century and remains the centre of Japan's oldest wine region, the Koshu valley. Hot springs run under the city.

from the studio
Kofu
— bring it home

Kofu, 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 Kofu

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

Kofu is the capital of Yamanashi Prefecture, set in the Kofu Basin at roughly 270 metres elevation and ringed by the Southern Japanese Alps to the west, the Okuchichibu mountains to the north, and the Misaka range to the south. The city's population is about 187,000. Mount Fuji rises to the south, visible across the basin on clear days. Kofu sits on the JR Chuo Main Line, about 90 minutes by limited express from Shinjuku, and serves as the gateway to the Minami Alps, the Shosenkyo Gorge, and the Koshu wine country east of the city.

— the year

Kofu was the political seat of the Takeda clan through the Sengoku period, and the warlord Takeda Shingen, born here in 1521, is the city's enduring figure. His residence at Tsutsujigasaki was destroyed after the clan's defeat in 1582 and now holds the Takeda Shrine. The annual Shingen-ko Festival in early April brings a procession of roughly 1,500 armoured re-enactors through the city, honouring the anniversary of Shingen's death on 13 April 1573. His statue stands outside Kofu Station; the surrounding streets carry the takeda-bishi, the four-diamond mon of the clan.

— the stone

Two structures anchor the city's stonework. The keep platform and walls of Maizuru Castle Park, immediately north of the station, are the remains of the Edo-period Kofu Castle whose wooden buildings were lost long ago. North-east of the city, Shosenkyo Gorge cuts a roughly five-kilometre canyon of granite cliffs and worked river stone, named one of Japan's most beautiful gorges by the Ministry of the Environment. Kofu is also the centre of the Koshu wine industry, with vineyards on the slopes north and east of the basin producing Koshu, Muscat Bailey A, and Merlot since 1874.

— informed by Wikipedia — Shosenkyo
— where
Japan · Kofu, Yamanashi
— elevation
270 m · 886 ft
— position
35.6642° N · 138.5683° 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.
2 km N
Takeda Shrine
Shinto shrine
1 km N
Maizuru Castle Park
castle ruins
12 km NE
Shosenkyo Gorge
gorge
35 km S
Mount Fuji
stratovolcano
15 km E
Koshu vineyards
wine region
N
Kofu
Takeda Shrine
Maizuru Castle Park
Shosenkyo Gorge
Mount Fuji
Koshu vineyards
— common questions

What people ask.

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

Kofu is the capital of Yamanashi Prefecture, in central Honshu about 120 kilometres west of Tokyo. The city sits in the Kofu Basin, ringed by the Southern Japanese Alps and within view of Mount Fuji to the south.

Three things, mainly: as the sixteenth-century seat of the warlord Takeda Shingen and his clan; as the centre of Japan's oldest wine region, the Koshu valley; and as the gateway to the Minami Alps and the Shosenkyo Gorge.

The JR Chuo Line Limited Express Azusa or Kaiji from Shinjuku reaches Kofu Station in roughly 90 minutes. By car, the Chuo Expressway covers the same route in about two hours outside peak travel times.

The festival runs over a weekend in early April, around the anniversary of Takeda Shingen's death on 13 April 1573. The procession of roughly 1,500 samurai re-enactors crosses the city on the Saturday.

Koshu is a pink-skinned grape grown in Yamanashi since at least the twelfth century. The modern wine industry around Kofu dates to 1874; Koshu, Muscat Bailey A, and Merlot are the leading varieties today.

— about the piece in your home

Yes. For families whose roots reach the Takeda lands or the Koshu vineyards, Kofu is a settled home image. A Small for a tansu or a Medium for an entry wall reads as recognition.

The artwork's mountain blue, vineyard green, and dark timber palette suit Japandi, Minimalist Asian, and Mountain-modern rooms. It also lands well in wine-room or cellar interiors with stone and oak.

Yes. Japandi has held as a dominant interior direction since the early 2020s, and place-specific Japanese imagery — particularly mountain valleys and castle towns — has carried alongside it.

Above a sofa, a single Large or a four-tile Mural reads at the right scale. Above a console or tansu, a Medium hung a hand-width above the surface carries the proportion the basin asks for.

Yes, in Dura Satin or Matte. Both finishes resist steam, splash, and scratch, and suit the cool blue and green palette of the artwork in a bath or kitchen setting.

A soft microfibre cloth, lightly damp with water, is enough. No solvents, no abrasive pads. The colour lives in the surface and does not lift with normal cleaning.

— if this one stayed with you

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