Wender·Vista
Kandy
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileSri Lanka
in the central highlands of Sri Lanka

Kandy

— — the city the kings kept last.

— 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 city in the hill country of Sri Lanka, built around a lake the last king dug himself in 1807. The Temple of the Tooth holds a relic of the Buddha and has done so for centuries. Each summer the relic is carried through the streets behind a hundred caparisoned elephants and a thousand drummers and dancers. The hills above hold tea, and the rain comes most afternoons. — from the studio

from the studio
Kandy
— bring it home

Kandy, 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 Kandy

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

Kandy sits in the central highlands of Sri Lanka at roughly 500 metres elevation, on a plateau surrounded by the Knuckles range to the north-east. It was the last capital of the Sinhalese kings, holding out against Portuguese and Dutch advances before falling to the British in 1815 with the signing of the Kandyan Convention. The Sacred City of Kandy was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1988. Greater Kandy has a population of around 125,000.

— the year

The Esala Perahera is the city's defining festival, held over ten nights in July or August in the month of Esala. The procession leaves the Temple of the Tooth each evening with a casket symbolising the relic, escorted by Kandyan drummers, fire-twirlers, dancers in the white-and-silver ves costume, and roughly a hundred caparisoned elephants. The final night, the Randoli Perahera, is the largest. The festival traces its current form to King Kirti Sri Rajasinha in the eighteenth century.

— the visit

Sri Dalada Maligawa, the Temple of the Tooth, opens to visitors three times a day for puja: at 5:30, 9:30, and 18:30. Modest dress is required; shoulders and knees covered, shoes left at the entrance. Kandy is reached from Colombo in about three hours by road or by the scenic train line that climbs through Rambukkana, with onward services to Nuwara Eliya and Ella. The lake walk circles roughly 3.4 kilometres.

— where
Sri Lanka · Kandy District, Central Province
— elevation
500 m · 1,640 ft
— position
7.2906° N · 80.6337° 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
Temple of the Tooth
Buddhist temple
at the lake
Kandy Lake
lake
6 km W
Peradeniya Botanic Gardens
garden
30 km NE
Knuckles Range
mountains
N
Kandy
Temple of the Tooth
Kandy Lake
Peradeniya Botanic Gardens
Knuckles Range
— common questions

What people ask.

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

Kandy is in the central highlands of Sri Lanka at about 500 metres elevation, roughly 115 kilometres east of Colombo by road. It is the seat of Kandy District in the Central Province.

It was the last capital of the Sinhalese kings, holding out against Portuguese and Dutch advances before ceding to the British in 1815. The Sacred City of Kandy was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1988.

Sri Dalada Maligawa houses a tooth relic of the Buddha, brought to the island in the fourth century and to Kandy in the sixteenth. It is one of the most venerated Buddhist sites in the world.

Over ten nights in July or August, ending on the full-moon poya night. The procession features Kandyan drummers, dancers in white-and-silver ves costume, and roughly a hundred caparisoned elephants.

From Colombo, about three hours by road or by the scenic train line that climbs through Rambukkana. From Kandy, the same line continues to Nuwara Eliya and Ella through the tea country.

No. Kandy Lake was built in 1807 by Sri Vikrama Rajasinha, the last king, who flooded the paddy fields below the palace. The shore walk now circles roughly 3.4 kilometres.

— about the piece in your home

It carries well to anyone who grew up in the hill country or who returns to Kandy for the Perahera. The Medium with a handwritten note from the studio is the size most of our gift buyers send.

Yes. The Keepsake or Small sits well on a shelf beside a candle or statue. The Medium hangs cleanly above a low altar or in a quiet room where the eye rests on it for a while.

The piece reads in Tropical Modern, Sri Lankan Heritage, and Jewel-tone Maximalist interiors. The palette pulls toward jungle-green, lamp-gold, and lake-blue, which carry against teak, lime-washed plaster, or warm wood.

Above a sofa, a single Large or a 4-tile Mural holds the wall. Above a console table, the Medium is usually right. The 9-tile Mural is reserved for stair walls and double-height rooms.

Yes, in either the Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and stand up to steam and splash. The Glossy finish is best kept to dry display rooms.

A soft microfibre cloth and plain water. No abrasives, no ammonia, no citrus cleaners. The colour lives in the ceramic surface, so daily wiping does not fade it.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is original to the studio and never licensed out. Reid Wender curates each place into the atlas, and the studio hand-finishes every tile in Knoxville.

— 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.