shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileUnited Kingdom

in the City of London, a few blocks east of the Bank junction

30 St Mary Axe

— — the curve the skyline learned to keep.

— 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

— 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 180-metre tower in the City of London, finished in 2003 to designs by Norman Foster on the site of the old Baltic Exchange. The diagonally braced glass skin spirals around an open atrium, narrowing at the top to a single curved lens. Londoners settled on a name within a week: the Gherkin.

from the studio

— bring it home

30 St Mary Axe, 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 30 St Mary Axe

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

30 St Mary Axe stands at the eastern edge of the City of London's financial district, a few blocks east of the Bank junction and around the corner from Leadenhall Market. The tower rises 180 metres over 41 floors, occupying a small triangular site bounded by St Mary Axe and Bury Street. Its glass curtain wall, diagonally braced and tapered at top and bottom, has made it one of the most recognised silhouettes on the London skyline since its completion in 2003.

— informed by Wikipedia

— the stone

Designed by Foster + Partners with structural engineering by Arup, the tower uses a diagrid exterior frame, which carries the building's loads through a triangular lattice of steel and removes the need for internal columns near the perimeter. The aerodynamic profile reduces wind loads on neighbouring streets, and a system of light wells spiralling up the building was projected to cut energy use by up to half compared with a conventional office tower of the same size.

— informed by Foster + Partners

— the year

The site was occupied by the Baltic Exchange, built in 1903, which was severely damaged by a Provisional IRA bomb in April 1992. The exchange building was eventually dismantled, and after planning negotiations the current tower was approved in 2000. Foster's design was completed in December 2003 and opened the following spring. It was sold in 2007 for £600 million, then a record for a single British office building, and changed hands again in 2014.

— informed by Arup

— where

United Kingdom · City of London, England

— position

51.5145° N · 0.0803° 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.

0.2 km SW

Leadenhall Market

Victorian market hall

0.2 km S

Lloyd's of London

Rogers insurance building

0.8 km SE

Tower of London

royal fortress

30 St Mary Axe

Leadenhall Market

Lloyd's of London

Tower of London

— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about 30 St Mary Axe — and about bringing the piece home.

— about the place

A 180-metre office tower in the City of London designed by Norman Foster and completed in 2003. It's widely known as the Gherkin for its tapered curved form, with 41 floors on the site of the old Baltic Exchange.

Foster + Partners, led by Norman Foster, with structural engineering by Arup. It was one of the first London towers to use a diagrid frame, with a triangular steel lattice on the exterior carrying the building's loads.

The nickname stuck within a week of the first renderings being published, for the tower's tapered curved profile resembling a pickled cucumber. Foster's office never used the name officially, but it has become the building's common identity.

Construction began in 2001 and the tower was completed in December 2003, opening for tenants the following spring. It replaced the Baltic Exchange, which had stood on the site from 1903 until a 1992 IRA bomb damaged it beyond repair.

The tower is mostly private office space. The Helix restaurant and Iris bar on the upper floors are open by reservation, and the building occasionally takes part in the annual Open House London weekend in September.

— about the piece in your home

It lands well for a London banker, a Foster + Partners architect, or anyone whose working years were spent in or around the Square Mile. The image carries the skyline without becoming a souvenir.

The piece suits Modernist, Industrial-modern, and Loft-contemporary rooms. It reads well above a steel-frame console, on a charcoal feature wall, or in an office paired with brushed-brass lighting.

A single Large carries a console or a smaller sofa wall. A four-tile Mural anchors a standard sofa, and a nine-tile Mural fills a long wall above a sectional or sideboard.

Yes, with the Dura Satin or Matte finish, which are scratch-resistant and unaffected by steam and splash. Glossy is reserved for framed wall pieces in dry rooms.

A soft microfibre cloth and clean water. No abrasive sponges, no glass cleaner, no kitchen sprays. The colour lives in the ceramic surface beneath a thin protective layer.

— if this one stayed with you

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