Wender·Vista
Tula
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileRussia
on the Upa River, about 180 kilometres south of Moscow

Tula

— — the city of samovars and the gunsmith's craft.

— 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 regional capital on the Upa River, about 180 kilometres south of Moscow. Tula has made arms since Peter the Great founded the imperial arms factory there in 1712, and samovars and pryanik gingerbread since the eighteenth century. The brick Tula Kremlin, finished in 1520, still holds the centre of the city. Yasnaya Polyana, where Tolstoy was born and is buried, lies fourteen kilometres south down the old Oryol road.

from the studio
Tula
— bring it home

Tula, 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 Tula

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

Tula is the administrative centre of Tula Oblast, on the Upa River about 180 kilometres south of Moscow on the M2 highway and the Moscow-Kursk railway. Its population is around 470,000. The city sits on the Central Russian Upland in the forest-steppe zone, on ground that was a fortified frontier of the Grand Duchy of Moscow in the sixteenth century. The Upa, a left tributary of the Oka, powered the early waterwheels of the arms forges and still defines the northern edge of the historic city.

— the stone

The Tula Kremlin is a rectangular brick and limestone citadel completed in 1520 on the orders of Vasily III as part of the southern defensive line against the Crimean Khanate. Its walls, about a kilometre in total length, enclose nine towers and two cathedrals, the Dormition and the Epiphany. The Tula Arms Plant, founded by decree of Peter the Great in 1712, stands two blocks west on the south bank of the Upa and is still in operation. The State Arms Museum on the kremlin grounds holds the historic collection.

— the year

Yasnaya Polyana, the estate where Leo Tolstoy was born in 1828 and is buried, lies fourteen kilometres south of central Tula and operates as a state museum on the original grounds and house. Tolstoy wrote much of War and Peace and all of Anna Karenina at the estate, and the surrounding birch woods are open to walk. The Battle of Kulikovo, fought in 1380 between the forces of Dmitry Donskoy and the Golden Horde, took place about 120 kilometres southeast and is commemorated at the Kulikovo Field state museum.

— where
Russia · Tula, Tula Oblast
— elevation
190 m · 623 ft
— position
54.1961° N · 37.6182° 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.
14 km S
Yasnaya Polyana
museum estate
1 km C
Tula Kremlin
citadel
1 km W
Tula Arms Plant
historic factory
120 km SE
Kulikovo Field
battlefield museum
N
Tula
Yasnaya Polyana
Tula Kremlin
Tula Arms Plant
Kulikovo Field
— common questions

What people ask.

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

Tula is the capital of Tula Oblast in central European Russia, on the Upa River about 180 kilometres south of Moscow on the M2 highway and the Moscow-Kursk rail line. Its population is around 470,000.

Tula is best known for the imperial arms factory founded by Peter the Great in 1712, for tin and brass samovars produced in the city since the eighteenth century, and for pryanik, a hard honey gingerbread stamped with carved wooden moulds.

A brick and limestone citadel completed in 1520 under Vasily III as part of the southern defensive line. Its walls run about a kilometre and enclose nine towers and the Dormition and Epiphany cathedrals.

Yes. Leo Tolstoy's birthplace and burial estate lies fourteen kilometres south of central Tula and is open as a state museum, with the original house, outbuildings, and surrounding birch woods preserved.

Peter the Great founded the imperial arms factory at Tula by decree in 1712 to supply the Russian army. The plant remains in operation, and the historic collection is held at the State Arms Museum on the kremlin grounds.

A traditional Russian water heater for tea, produced in Tula since the late eighteenth century in tin-lined brass. The Samovar Museum, in two buildings near the kremlin, holds the historic collection.

— about the piece in your home

The piece reads well for readers of Tolstoy, Russian-speaking households, and anyone with family from central Russia. A Small or Medium with a studio note carries the city's craft history.

The tile sits well in heritage-modern and old-European interiors, against dark wood, brass, and warm plaster. It also holds its own as the single piece in a study or library.

The piece fits the recent return to nineteenth-century European reference in domestic art. The visual treatment keeps the architecture saturated without leaning into pastiche.

A single Large covers most sofas and consoles. A four-tile Mural extends the field; a nine-tile Mural reads from across the room. The Medium suits a console or narrow hall.

Yes, in Dura Satin or Matte. Both shed steam and splashes and resist scratching. The Glossy finish is reserved for dry framed wall display.

A soft microfibre cloth and water. Skip abrasive sprays and bleach-based cleaners. The colour lives in the ceramic surface and will not wear with cleaning.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is curated by Reid Wender and produced in our Knoxville studio. The visual language is ours and is not licensed elsewhere.

— if this one stayed with you

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