Wender·Vista
North Island
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileNew Zealand
the warmer of New Zealand's two main islands

North Island

— — the island where the earth still breathes.

— 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 northern of New Zealand's two main islands, where most of the country lives and where the land remembers it is volcanic. Auckland sits on a field of fifty cones. Rotorua steams. Tongariro holds three active volcanoes in a single national park. The Bay of Islands threads through the northern coast. South of all of it, on the Cook Strait, Wellington keeps the parliament and the wind.

from the studio
North Island
— bring it home

North 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 North 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

Te Ika-a-Māui, the North Island, is the more populous of New Zealand's two main islands, covering about 114,000 square kilometres and home to roughly 3.9 million people, or 76% of the national population. Auckland alone holds 1.7 million. The island runs from Cape Reinga in the north to Wellington on Cook Strait in the south, with the Central Plateau and its three active volcanoes (Ruapehu, Ngauruhoe, and Tongariro) at its centre. Māori first settled here in the 13th century; Captain Cook charted the coastline in 1769 and 1770.

— the water

The North Island is shaped by water in three registers. The Bay of Islands, a 144-island archipelago on the northeast coast, was the first place of sustained European-Māori contact and the site of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840. Lake Taupō, in the centre, is the largest freshwater lake in Oceania at 616 square kilometres and fills the caldera of one of the world's most powerful eruptions, around 232 AD. The hot springs of Rotorua and the geysers of Wai-O-Tapu surface the same heat that drives the volcanoes.

— the visit

State Highway 1 runs the length of the island from Cape Reinga to Wellington, roughly 1,000 kilometres or two long days of driving. Auckland International Airport is the main entry; rental cars and the Northern Explorer rail service handle most overland travel. The Tongariro Alpine Crossing, a 19.4-kilometre day hike across the volcanic plateau, is one of the world's best-known one-day walks. Hobbiton, the film set near Matamata, draws coach traffic from Auckland and Rotorua. The Cook Strait ferry from Wellington reaches Picton on the South Island in three hours.

— informed by Tourism New Zealand
— where
New Zealand · North Island, New Zealand
— position
-38.5000° S · 176.0000° 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
Auckland
city
at the lake
Wellington
capital city
at the lake
Rotorua
geothermal town
at the lake
Tongariro National Park
national park
at the lake
Bay of Islands
archipelago
N
North Island
Auckland
Wellington
Rotorua
Tongariro National Park
Bay of Islands
— common questions

What people ask.

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

About 114,000 square kilometres, slightly smaller than England. It is home to roughly 3.9 million people, or 76% of New Zealand's population, and contains the country's three largest cities: Auckland, Wellington, and Hamilton.

Te Ika-a-Māui, meaning 'the fish of Māui'. Māori tradition tells of the demigod Māui fishing the island up from the sea; the South Island is the canoe he stood in.

The Central Plateau holds three active volcanoes: Ruapehu (2,797 m), Ngauruhoe (2,291 m), and Tongariro (1,978 m). Auckland sits on a separate volcanic field of about fifty cones, the most recent being Rangitoto, around 600 years old.

Yes. The North Island sits between roughly 34 and 41 degrees south and has a subtropical north, mild middle, and temperate south. The South Island runs colder, drier in the east, and snowier in winter.

A 144-island archipelago on the northeast coast, around Paihia and Russell. It is where Captain Cook first anchored in 1769 and where the Treaty of Waitangi was signed in 1840, founding modern New Zealand.

— about the piece in your home

It has carried well for New Zealanders abroad and for visitors who hiked Tongariro or stayed in the Bay of Islands. A Medium reads well; a Small with a studio note travels easily as a posted gift.

The greens and volcanic blacks suit Biophilic, Pacific Modern, and warm Minimalist interiors. The palette also reads in a Mountain Modern room with timber, wool, and dark stone.

Yes. Biophilic design favours place-specific natural imagery over generic foliage, and the North Island palette of fern green, geothermal sulphur, and basalt anchors a room without flattening to wallpaper.

A Large works above a console. Above a standard sofa, a 4-tile Mural carries the wall; for a long lodge-style room, the 9-tile Mural holds the eye at the right distance.

Yes. Order in Dura Satin or Matte. Both are scratch-resistant and suited to wet rooms. The colour is held in the ceramic surface and will not lift with regular cleaning.

A soft microfibre cloth with water is enough. No abrasives, no acidic cleaners. The colour is slowly infused into the ceramic and rests beneath a thin glossy finish.

Yes. Every WenderVista tile is drawn and finished in-house in Knoxville, Tennessee. Reid Wender curates each place; nothing is licensed from outside artists or 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.