Wender·Vista
Angel Island
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileUnited States
in San Francisco Bay, north of Alcatraz

Angel Island

— — the island the city forgets it can see.

— 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 largest natural island in San Francisco Bay, sitting between Tiburon and the Golden Gate. From the ferry it is a green hill rising out of the water, oak and bay laurel above old barracks. The immigration station on the north shore held detainees from 1910 to 1940, and the walls there still carry their carved Chinese poems. from the studio

from the studio
Angel Island
— bring it home

Angel 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 Angel 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

Angel Island is a 740-acre island in San Francisco Bay, the largest natural island in the bay, rising to 788 feet at Mount Caroline Livermore. It sits north of Alcatraz and a short ferry crossing from Tiburon in Marin County. The whole island is California State Park, threaded by the five-mile Perimeter Road and a network of trails through coast live oak and bay laurel. Coast Miwok people fished and gathered acorns here long before the Spanish charted it in 1775.

— the year

From 1910 to 1940 the U.S. Immigration Station on the north shore processed roughly half a million people, most of them arrivals from China detained for weeks or months under the Chinese Exclusion Act. Detainees carved more than two hundred poems into the barracks walls, written in classical Chinese, mourning families and the long wait for hearings. The site is now a National Historic Landmark, and the restored detention barracks opened to the public in 2009 as a museum run by the Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation.

— the visit

The island is reached only by boat. Public ferries run year-round from Tiburon (about ten minutes) and seasonally from Pier 41 in San Francisco; private boats can tie up at Ayala Cove. Day use costs a small per-person fee paid with the ferry ticket. The Perimeter Road loop is five miles and walkable in two to three hours; tram tours run on summer weekends. The immigration station museum, on the north side, keeps shorter winter hours and is closed some Mondays.

— where
United States · Marin County, California
— within
Angel Island State Park
— elevation
240 m · 788 ft
— position
37.8609° N · 122.4327° 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.
3 km S
Alcatraz Island
former federal prison
2 km N
Tiburon
Marin waterfront town
6 km W
Golden Gate Bridge
suspension bridge
5 km NW
Sausalito
Marin waterfront town
N
Angel Island
Alcatraz Island
Tiburon
Golden Gate Bridge
Sausalito
— common questions

What people ask.

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

Only by boat. Public ferries cross from Tiburon year-round (about ten minutes) and seasonally from Pier 41 in San Francisco. Private boats can moor at Ayala Cove on the north side.

From 1910 to 1940 it housed the U.S. Immigration Station that processed about half a million people, most arriving from China. Detainees carved over two hundred Chinese poems into the barracks walls during long detentions.

Angel Island covers about 740 acres, the largest natural island in San Francisco Bay. The high point is Mount Caroline Livermore at 788 feet, with a five-mile Perimeter Road circling the coast.

Coast Miwok people fished, hunted, and gathered acorns on the island for centuries before Spanish navigator Juan de Ayala charted the cove that bears his name in 1775.

Yes. The restored detention barracks reopened as a museum in 2009 and are run by the Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation. Winter hours are shorter and the site closes some Mondays.

Yes. The state park keeps a small number of environmental walk-in campsites with bay and city views. They book months ahead through ReserveCalifornia, especially for spring and autumn weekends.

— about the piece in your home

It carries weight for people whose families passed through the immigration station, and for anyone who grew up taking the Tiburon ferry. A Medium or Small with a handwritten note from the studio reads well.

The greens and bay blues sit comfortably in Coastal-modern, California Craftsman, and warm Minimalist rooms. The piece anchors well over a wood console or beside a window facing soft western light.

Yes. Pacific coastal-modern leans into muted blue-greens and weathered wood rather than tropical brights, and the tile's stained-glass palette fits that direction without going literal-nautical.

A single Large reads from across a room above a console. Above a full sofa, a 4-tile Mural carries the wall; for a long sectional, the 9-tile Mural holds the proportion better.

Yes, in Dura Satin or Matte. Both finishes resist scratches and moisture, so the tile sits well on a bathroom wall, in a kitchen nook, or behind a stove-side shelf.

A dry or barely damp microfibre cloth is enough. The colour is infused into the ceramic surface and lives beneath a thin finish, so no polish, wax, or harsh cleaner is needed.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is original to our studio, painted in our stained-glass and alcohol-ink language. We don't license, resell, or reprint other artists' work.

— if this one stayed with you

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