Wender·Vista
Chatham Island
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileNew Zealand
in the South Pacific, 800 kilometres east of the New Zealand mainland

Chatham Island

— — the first land the 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

“The largest island of the Chathams group, called Rēkohu by the Moriori and Wharekauri by Māori. About six hundred people live here, most of them in Waitangi on the western coast. The island sits close to the International Date Line, which means the sunrise lands here before almost anywhere else on earth. The wind never quite stops. — from the studio

from the studio
Chatham Island
— bring it home

Chatham Island, 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 Chatham Island

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

Chatham Island is the largest of the Chathams, a small archipelago about 800 kilometres east of Christchurch in the South Pacific. The island covers roughly 900 square kilometres and is home to around 600 residents, the majority living in the settlement of Waitangi. It is part of New Zealand's Chatham Islands Territory and was first settled by the Moriori people, who called it Rēkohu, meaning misty sun. The land is low and windswept, shaped by peat, dune lakes, and a long coastline of basalt cliffs.

— the silence

There is no town here in the mainland sense. Waitangi has a wharf, a hotel, a small store, and a school. The interior is largely peatland and farmland, with Te Whanga Lagoon stretching across much of the island's middle. Flights from Auckland and Christchurch land at Tuuta Airport a few times a week. Many residents are descended from Moriori and Māori families, and the rhythm of the place is shaped less by clock-time than by weather coming in off the Southern Ocean.

— the dawn

Because the Chathams sit just west of the International Date Line, at about 176 degrees west longitude but on New Zealand's calendar day, they keep their own time zone — 45 minutes ahead of mainland New Zealand. This means the islands are among the first inhabited places on earth to see each sunrise. Visitors often gather at the eastern coast, near Owenga or Hanson Bay, to watch the first light strike the basalt headlands before it reaches any other settlement in the country.

— where
New Zealand · Chatham Islands Territory
— position
-43.9500° S · 176.5500° 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
Waitangi
settlement
10 km E
Te Whanga Lagoon
lagoon
20 km SE
Pitt Island
island
N
Chatham Island
Waitangi
Te Whanga Lagoon
Pitt Island
— common questions

What people ask.

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

Chatham Island sits in the South Pacific about 800 kilometres east of Christchurch, New Zealand. It is the largest island of the Chathams archipelago and part of New Zealand's Chatham Islands Territory.

Around 600 people live on the island, most of them in the settlement of Waitangi. Residents include descendants of the Moriori, the original Polynesian inhabitants, alongside Māori and European settler families.

The Chathams sit just west of the International Date Line but keep New Zealand's calendar day, 45 minutes ahead of the mainland. This places them among the earliest inhabited points on earth to receive daylight.

Air Chathams operates flights from Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch to Tuuta Airport, a journey of about two hours. There is no regular passenger ferry. Most visitors travel by air and stay several days.

Rēkohu is the Moriori name for Chatham Island, often translated as misty sun. The Moriori people developed a distinct language and a tradition of non-violence on the island over many centuries before outside contact.

Chatham Island is low and largely treeless, shaped by peatland, dune lakes, and basalt cliffs along the coast. Te Whanga Lagoon covers much of the interior. The Southern Ocean weather keeps the air cool and the wind near-constant.

— about the piece in your home

It carries well for people connected to the island, including Moriori and Māori families and the small mainland diaspora. A Small or Medium with a handwritten note from the studio is the usual choice.

The piece sits naturally in coastal-modern, mountain-modern, and quiet-maximalist rooms. The deep blue-grey and basalt tones read well against linen, raw oak, and pale plaster walls.

Yes. Coastal-modern rooms have moved toward cooler, southern-ocean palettes in the last few years, away from sun-bleached Mediterranean blues. This tile fits that shift comfortably.

A single Large reads as a focal piece above a console. Above a standard sofa, a 4-tile Mural or a 9-tile Mural carries the wall without crowding the room.

Yes, in the Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and suited to humid rooms and vertical installations. The Glossy finish is best kept to dry walls and framed pieces.

A soft microfibre cloth and water. No abrasive sprays, no scouring pads. The colour lives in the ceramic surface and will not lift with normal cleaning.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is original work from a single family studio in Knoxville, Tennessee. Nothing is licensed in. Reid Wender curates each place that enters the atlas.

— if this one stayed with you

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