Wender·Vista
Block Island
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileUnited States
twelve miles south of the Rhode Island coast

Block Island

— — the Atlantic, slowed to a hush.

— 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 island sits twelve miles out from Point Judith, reached by an hour of open water on the Block Island Ferry. Mohegan Bluffs drop a hundred and fifty feet straight to the sea at the southern end. Two lighthouses still hold the corners: Southeast Light from 1875, North Light from 1867. The Nature Conservancy calls it one of the last great places on the Atlantic seaboard.

from the studio
Block Island
— bring it home

Block 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 Block 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

Block Island is a roughly 9.7-square-mile island in Washington County, Rhode Island, about twelve miles south of the Point Judith ferry landing. Around 1,400 people live there full-time; that count climbs sharply between Memorial Day and Columbus Day. The land was carved by the last glaciation, leaving a rolling moraine and the freshwater Great Salt Pond at the centre. The Nature Conservancy named it one of the Last Great Places in the western hemisphere, and roughly forty percent of the island is held in conservation by local trusts.

— the air

Weather on the island runs cooler than the mainland in summer and milder in winter; the surrounding Atlantic acts as a slow thermostat. Fog rolls in often enough that the Coast Guard kept fog signals at both lights for over a century. Salt is in the air, in the cedar, in the shingles of the older houses. The Southeast Light, on Mohegan Bluffs, was moved 245 feet back from the cliff edge in 1993 after erosion brought the drop within fifty-five feet of the foundation.

— the visit

Most visitors arrive on the Block Island Ferry from Point Judith, a crossing of about an hour that operates daily, or by the seasonal high-speed service from Newport. A small airport handles light aircraft from Westerly State Airport. Cars can be brought over, but most people rent a bicycle or a moped at Old Harbor and ride the seventeen-mile loop. Mohegan Bluffs and the Clay Head Trail are reached on foot; the Southeast Light and North Light are both open seasonally for interior tours.

— where
United States · Washington County, Rhode Island
— position
41.1725° N · 71.5778° 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
Mohegan Bluffs
sea cliffs
3 km S
Southeast Light
lighthouse
6 km N
North Light
lighthouse
1 km E
Old Harbor
village harbour
N
Block Island
Mohegan Bluffs
Southeast Light
North Light
Old Harbor
— common questions

What people ask.

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

Block Island lies about twelve miles south of the Rhode Island mainland, reached by ferry from Point Judith in Narragansett. It is part of Washington County and covers roughly 9.7 square miles.

The traditional Block Island Ferry runs daily from Point Judith and takes about an hour. A seasonal high-speed ferry runs from Newport, and Westerly State Airport handles light aircraft to the island's small field.

The Mohegan Bluffs are clay cliffs on the southern end of the island that drop about 150 feet to the Atlantic. A wooden stairway leads down to the beach below the Southeast Light.

Roughly forty percent of the island is held in conservation by the Nature Conservancy, the Block Island Conservancy, and the town. The Nature Conservancy named it one of twelve Last Great Places in the western hemisphere.

The Southeast Light, built in 1875, was relocated 245 feet inland in 1993 after coastal erosion brought the cliff edge within fifty-five feet of the foundation. It still operates as an active aid to navigation.

About 1,400 people live on the island full-time. The population climbs into the tens of thousands between Memorial Day and Columbus Day during the summer season, then thins quickly after October.

— about the piece in your home

It has been a meaningful gift for our customers with summers on the island or family in Rhode Island. A Small or Medium with a handwritten note from the studio reads as a piece of the place, not a souvenir.

The blue-and-grey palette sits well in Coastal-modern, New England traditional, and Minimalist rooms with linen and weathered oak. It also holds its own in a darker, Jewel-tone room where the sea reads as the cool note.

Coastal-modern has moved away from sand-and-rope motifs toward quieter Atlantic palettes and painterly surfaces. This tile fits that direction; the colour reads as the ocean off Rhode Island, not a beach-house cliché.

Above a standard sofa or console, a single Large reads as a window. For a longer wall, a four-tile Mural reads as a horizon. Above a desk or in a hallway, a Medium holds the space without crowding it.

Yes. For a backsplash, shower wall, or powder room, order the Dura Satin or Matte finish; both are scratch-resistant and made for vertical installation in wet rooms. Glossy is intended for framed wall pieces and dry display.

A microfibre cloth and water is enough for ordinary dust. For a kitchen or bath installation, a mild non-abrasive cleaner is fine. No solvents, no bleach, no scouring pads on the surface.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is original work by Reid Wender, made in our single studio at the foot of the Smoky Mountains in Knoxville, Tennessee. We do not license the work to other manufacturers.

— if this one stayed with you

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