Wender·Vista
Angelus Temple
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileUnited States
above Echo Park Lake, on the north edge of downtown Los Angeles

Angelus Temple

— — a great white dome above the lake.

— 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

“On Glendale Boulevard above Echo Park Lake, Aimee Semple McPherson opened the Angelus Temple on the first day of 1923. The dome that crowns the sanctuary, a concrete shell more than a hundred feet across, was one of the largest of its kind in the country when it went up. Inside, the room holds something on the order of five thousand seats curving around a deep stage where she preached the Foursquare Gospel. The building still serves the church she founded. From the lake side, white against the palms, the dome reads like a piece of California civic architecture that decided to be a church.

from the studio
Angelus Temple
— bring it home

Angelus Temple, 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 Angelus Temple

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

Angelus Temple stands on Glendale Boulevard at the north end of Echo Park Lake, on the edge of downtown Los Angeles. It was built by the evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson as the headquarters of the Foursquare Gospel movement and dedicated on 1 January 1923. The building is the mother church of the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel, the denomination she founded in 1927. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1992 for its architectural and religious significance.

— the stone

The sanctuary is crowned by a concrete dome reported at the time of opening as among the largest unsupported domes in North America, roughly 110 feet in diameter, with no interior columns. The auditorium seats around 5,300, arranged in two galleries that curve around a wide proscenium stage. The building's exterior is plastered white in a restrained Italianate manner, with low classical detail along the cornice and a portico facing the boulevard. The architect of record was A. F. Leicht.

— the visit

Angelus Temple is an active congregation, with weekend services that draw a large and mixed crowd from across Los Angeles. Services are typically held Sunday mornings and Sunday evenings, with midweek programming through Foursquare's Dream Center campus a short distance north. The building is generally open for service attendance rather than for casual tourism, though visitors are welcome at any service. Street parking around Echo Park Lake is limited on Sunday morning; the Metro B Line stops within walking distance.

— where
United States · Echo Park, Los Angeles, California
— position
34.0786° N · 118.2606° 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 S
Echo Park Lake
city lake
1.5 km NE
Dodger Stadium
ballpark
N
Angelus Temple
Echo Park Lake
Dodger Stadium
— common questions

What people ask.

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

On Glendale Boulevard at the north end of Echo Park Lake, on the edge of downtown Los Angeles, in the Echo Park neighbourhood. The Metro B Line stops within walking distance.

The evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson built it as the headquarters of her Foursquare Gospel movement, with A. F. Leicht as the architect of record. It was dedicated on 1 January 1923.

An evangelical Pentecostal Christian movement founded by Aimee Semple McPherson. The International Church of the Foursquare Gospel formed in 1927, with Angelus Temple as its mother church.

The auditorium seats around 5,300 across two curved galleries, beneath a concrete dome roughly 110 feet across with no interior columns. The dome was among the largest unsupported domes in North America when it opened.

Yes. Angelus Temple was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1992 for its architectural and religious significance, and it appears on the National Register of Historic Places.

Yes. Angelus Temple remains an active and well-attended Foursquare congregation, with weekend services and ongoing community work through the Foursquare-affiliated Dream Center north of Echo Park.

— about the piece in your home

It has been a meaningful gift for Foursquare members, pastors and Echo Park-rooted customers. The dome carries quiet weight. A Small or Medium with a handwritten note from the studio carries well.

It sits well in California Modern interiors with white walls and warm wood, in classic Library-modern studies, and in Coastal-modern rooms where the white dome reads against linen and rattan.

Yes, with the move toward California Modern and Coastal-modern interiors, and the renewed interest in early-twentieth-century civic architecture as the visual centre of a room.

A single Large reads as a focal point above a standard sofa. Above a long console or a king bed, a four-tile Mural or a nine-tile Mural carries the wall more fully.

Yes, in the Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and suited to vertical installations including backsplashes and shower surrounds.

A soft microfibre cloth with water is enough. For kitchen installations a mild dish soap diluted in water is fine. Avoid abrasive pads and harsh solvents.

Yes. Every piece is original to the studio. There is no licensing and no third-party imagery. Reid Wender is the curator and the eye behind the atlas.

— if this one stayed with you

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