Wender·Vista
Attu Island
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileUnited States
the westernmost point of the Aleutians, out past the date line

Attu Island

— — the last island before the map turns over.

— 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 far western end of the Aleutian chain, closer to Kamchatka than to Anchorage. Treeless, wind-cut, ringed by green tundra and black volcanic ridges. The Battle of Attu in May 1943 was the only land battle of the Second World War fought on incorporated American soil, and the small Coast Guard station that followed it shut down in 2010. Today no one lives here. The fog comes in for days and the birds keep the place. — from the studio

from the studio
Attu Island
— bring it home

Attu 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 Attu 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

Attu is the westernmost island of the Aleutian chain and the westernmost point of the United States, sitting at roughly 52.9° north and 172.9° east — across the 180th meridian from the rest of Alaska. It is about 35 miles long, treeless, and ringed by mountains that rise to over 2,900 feet at Attu Mountain. The island is part of the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge, administered from Homer, and lies closer to the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia than to mainland Alaska.

— the year

Attu was occupied by Japanese forces in June 1942 and retaken by U.S. troops in the Battle of Attu, fought from 11 to 30 May 1943 — the only land battle of the Second World War on incorporated American soil. The original Unangax̂ village at Attu was never reinhabited after its residents were taken to Japan as prisoners. A small Coast Guard LORAN station kept a handful of personnel on the island until it was decommissioned in 2010, leaving Attu uninhabited.

— the silence

There is no scheduled passenger service to Attu, no harbour staff, and no inhabitants. Reaching the island means a long charter or a research vessel out of Adak or Dutch Harbor, weather permitting, and weather here rarely does. Attu is one of the legendary sites in North American birding for Asiatic vagrants — whiskered auklet, common rosefinch, Siberian rubythroat — that the wind brings across from Kamchatka. Most days the cloud is on the deck and the only sound is wind on tundra.

— where
United States · Aleutians West Census Area, Alaska
— within
Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge
— position
52.9200° N · 172.9100° 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.
56 km SE
Agattu Island
island
56 km E
Shemya Island
island
700 km E
Adak
town
N
Attu Island
Agattu Island
Shemya Island
Adak
— common questions

What people ask.

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

Attu is the westernmost island in the Aleutian chain and the westernmost point of the United States, sitting across the 180th meridian and closer to Kamchatka than to mainland Alaska.

No. The original Unangax̂ village was never reinhabited after the Second World War, and the Coast Guard LORAN station was decommissioned in 2010, leaving the island uninhabited.

Fought from 11 to 30 May 1943, it was the U.S. recapture of the island from Japanese forces and the only land battle of the Second World War on incorporated American soil.

There is no scheduled service. Reaching the island means a long charter or research vessel out of Adak or Dutch Harbor, weather permitting, and weather here rarely cooperates.

Westerly winds carry Asiatic vagrants across from Kamchatka — whiskered auklet, common rosefinch, Siberian rubythroat — that rarely appear anywhere else in North America.

Attu sits inside the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge, administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service out of Homer, Alaska.

— about the piece in your home

It carries warmly to veterans of the LORAN station, descendants of Unangax̂ families, and serious birders who have stood on the island. A Medium with a handwritten note tends to land well.

The tundra and storm palette reads well in Coastal-modern, Mountain-modern, and quiet Minimalist rooms. It sits especially well against unfinished oak, slate, and weathered metal.

Yes. The muted greens and cold greys give a Minimalist room a single point of weather without breaking its calm, which suits the current preference for low-saturation art.

Above a standard sofa we point people to a single Large, a 4-tile Mural for fuller presence, or a 9-tile Mural when the wall can hold the whole horizon.

Yes. Order the Dura Satin or Matte finish for vertical installations near steam or splash. The Glossy finish is for framed wall art in drier rooms.

A soft microfibre cloth with plain water is enough. The colour lives in the ceramic surface beneath a thin protective finish, so household sprays and abrasives are not needed.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is original studio work, hand-finished in-house in Knoxville, Tennessee. Nothing is licensed in from outside artists or stock catalogues.

— 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.