Wender·Vista
Batangas City
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tilePhilippines
on Batangas Bay, in southern Luzon

Batangas City

— — a working harbour facing a sea full of fish.

— 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 Batangas province, on a wide bay that opens onto the Verde Island Passage — the strip of water marine biologists call the centre of the centre of fish diversity. Tankers and bancas share the same anchorage. In the old town the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception keeps its 1872 stone front above the plaza, and the lomi shops keep the noodles thick. Afternoons turn the bay the colour of warm tin. From the studio.

from the studio
Batangas City
— bring it home

Batangas City, 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 Batangas City

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

Batangas City is the capital of Batangas province in the Calabarzon region of southern Luzon, about 110 kilometres south of Manila. It sits on the northern shore of Batangas Bay, which opens through the Verde Island Passage to the Sibuyan Sea. The 2020 census recorded a population near 351,000, and the city was reclassified as highly urbanised in the same census round. The Port of Batangas is the second-busiest international port in the country, the main passenger gateway to Mindoro and the Visayas.

— the water

The Verde Island Passage, the narrow channel between Batangas and Mindoro, was identified by Conservation International in 2006 as the global centre of marine shorefish biodiversity. More than 1,700 fish species share that strip of water with reef-building corals, sea turtles, and the bancas of three provinces. Batangas Bay itself carries both the conservation pressure and the heavy industry: coal terminals, an oil refinery at Tabangao, and the busiest passenger port outside Manila all share the same shoreline.

— the visit

The Basilica Minore of the Immaculate Conception faces the city plaza along P. Burgos Street, the present church completed in 1872 over an earlier foundation from 1581. A few blocks away the lomi houses serve the thick egg-noodle soup that Batangas is known for across Luzon. Jeepneys for Lipa, Tanauan, and the Port leave from the Diversion Road terminal. Most travellers pass through on their way to the Batangas International Port for the fast craft to Puerto Galera; the city itself rewards a half-day of slow walking.

— informed by Wikipedia — Basilica
— where
Philippines · Batangas, Calabarzon
— elevation
5 m · 16 ft
— position
13.7565° N · 121.0583° 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.
35 km NW
Taal Volcano
active volcano in a caldera lake
25 km W
Anilao
dive coast on Balayan Bay
24 km S
Verde Island
passage island
N
Batangas City
Taal Volcano
Anilao
Verde Island
— common questions

What people ask.

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

On the northern shore of Batangas Bay in southern Luzon, Philippines, about 110 kilometres south of Manila. It is the capital of Batangas province and part of the Calabarzon region.

It opens onto the Verde Island Passage, identified by Conservation International in 2006 as the global centre of marine shorefish biodiversity, with more than 1,700 fish species in one narrow channel.

Its international port, the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, the lomi noodle dish, the balisong knife-making tradition of nearby Taal and Barangay Balisong, and the Tabangao oil refinery on the bay.

Yes. The Basilica Minore of the Immaculate Conception on P. Burgos Street, with the present stone church completed in 1872. It was raised to minor basilica rank in 1948.

By car or bus on the STAR Tollway, roughly two to three hours from Metro Manila depending on traffic. The Batangas International Port is the main onward gateway to Mindoro and the western Visayas.

A thick Chinese-Filipino egg-noodle soup, served with pork, liver, and chicharron in a starchy broth. The Batangas style is the most famous regional version and is the dish locals will recommend first.

— about the piece in your home

It has carried well for our customers with ties to the province. Batangueños hold the bay, the basilica, and the lomi houses as everyday landmarks. A Small or Coaster with a handwritten note from the studio reads as recognition, not souvenir.

The warm tin and ocean palette pairs naturally with Coastal-modern, Tropical Modern, and Filipino heritage interiors with capiz and rattan. It holds beside woven texture and dark hardwood.

Yes. Warm-coastal and Filipino-modern are a steady category for us right now; a Batangas tile reads as a real place rather than a generic beach print, which is why it places well in entryways and dining rooms.

Above a standard sofa, a single Large reads cleanly, a 4-tile Mural fills the wall, and a 9-tile Mural carries a long console. Above a console, the Large is usually right.

Yes. Order the Dura Satin or Matte finish for vertical installations in showers, splashbacks, and powder rooms. The Glossy finish is for framed wall pieces in dry rooms.

A soft microfibre cloth with plain water. No solvents, no abrasive sponges. The colour is infused into the ceramic surface and the finish protects it.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is original to our family studio in Knoxville, Tennessee. No licensing, no third-party imagery. Reid Wender curates the atlas and chooses what enters it.

— 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.