Wender·Vista
Kiritimati
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileKiribati
in the central Pacific, just north of the equator

Kiritimati

— — the first land the new day touches.

— 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 coral atoll in the central Pacific, part of the Republic of Kiribati. Kiritimati is the largest coral atoll on earth by land area, roughly 388 square kilometres, with a shallow lagoon flecked by smaller pools. The atoll sits at the eastern edge of the world's clocks. Kiribati moved the international date line in 1995 so that Kiritimati now sees the sunrise of each new day before any other inhabited land.

from the studio
Kiritimati
— bring it home

Kiritimati, 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 Kiritimati

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

Kiritimati, the Gilbertese spelling of Christmas, is a low-lying coral atoll in the Line Islands group of Kiribati, about 2,000 kilometres south of Honolulu and just north of the equator. Its land area of roughly 388 square kilometres makes it the largest coral atoll in the world by area, though the highest point is only about thirteen metres above the sea. The main settlement is London, on the northwest tip, with smaller villages at Banana, Tabwakea, and Poland. Captain James Cook reached the island on Christmas Eve 1777.

— the water

The atoll's interior is a network of brackish lagoons and shallow flats divided by coral ridges, and the surrounding ocean is held off by a continuous reef. The flats hold dense populations of bonefish, giant trevally, and triggerfish, and the island has been a saltwater fly-fishing destination for several decades, with guided trips running from London and Cassidy. Cordell Hull Lagoon and the Bay of Wrecks on the east shore are the larger named bodies of water inside the atoll's lobed perimeter.

— informed by Wikipedia
— the year

Kiritimati sits at UTC+14, the easternmost civil time on the planet. The current zone dates to a Kiribati government decision in 1995 to shift the international date line, ending an arrangement in which the country's own islands were split across two calendar days. Since then the atoll has been the first inhabited land to greet each new day and each new year. Sunrise on 1 January arrives at Kiritimati hours before it does at any other inhabited place on earth.

— where
Kiribati · Line Islands, Kiribati
— elevation
13 m · 43 ft
— position
1.8721° N · 157.4278° W
— 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
London
settlement
4 km S
Cassidy International Airport
airport
5 km W
Cook Islet
bird sanctuary
30 km E
Bay of Wrecks
lagoon
2000 km N
Honolulu
city
N
Kiritimati
London
Cassidy International Airport
Cook Islet
Bay of Wrecks
Honolulu
— common questions

What people ask.

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

In the Line Islands of Kiribati, in the central Pacific about 2,000 kilometres south of Honolulu and just north of the equator. The atoll sits roughly halfway between Hawaii and Tahiti.

Captain James Cook reached the atoll on Christmas Eve 1777 and named it accordingly. Kiritimati is the Gilbertese spelling of Christmas, pronounced roughly as kiri-si-mass, and is now the official name.

No. The Indian Ocean Christmas Island is an Australian territory south of Java. Kiritimati is in the central Pacific and belongs to Kiribati. The shared English name is unrelated geographically.

The land area is roughly 388 square kilometres, which makes Kiritimati the largest coral atoll on earth by area. Its highest point is about thirteen metres above sea level.

In 1995 Kiribati shifted the international date line eastward so that all its islands shared one calendar day. The Line Islands now sit in UTC+14, the world's easternmost civil time zone.

The town of London, on the northwest tip of the atoll, with the airport at Cassidy a few kilometres south. Banana, Tabwakea, and Poland are smaller villages along the lagoon and northern shore.

Saltwater fly fishing, especially for bonefish, giant trevally, and triggerfish on the shallow flats. The seabird colonies on Cook Islet and Motu Tabu are also a draw for ornithologists.

— about the piece in your home

For the small community of saltwater fly fishers who have spent a week on the flats, the atoll is a specific memory. A Small or Medium tile reads well as a quiet keepsake of the trip.

The piece holds up in coastal-modern rooms, on fishing-cabin walls, and in warm tropical-modern interiors. The palette leans into the turquoise and pale gold of the lagoon rather than the deep blue of the open Pacific.

The move is away from generic palm-and-sand prints toward painterly pieces of a specific named place. This piece sits in that family, closer to a keepsake than to a souvenir poster.

Above a console, the Large reads comfortably. Above a sofa, a four-tile Mural is the usual choice; a nine-tile Mural fits a longer wall or a tackle-room display.

Yes, in either the Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and made for vertical installation in showers, backsplashes, and humid powder rooms in coastal homes.

A soft microfibre cloth and water is enough. The colour lives inside the ceramic surface rather than on top, so the piece does not need polishing or sealing over time.

Yes. Each piece is painted in-studio under Reid Wender's eye, with no third-party licensing. The name refers to the atoll itself, not to any tourism property on the island.

— 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.