Wender·Vista
Theme Building
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileCalifornia · United States
at the centre of Los Angeles International Airport, between the terminals

Theme Building

— — the arch the future drew in 1961.

— 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

“Two white parabolic arches crossing over a glass-walled disc, raised on slender legs above the airport tarmac. The Theme Building opened in 1961, the work of a team led by Pereira, Luckman, Paul R. Williams, and Welton Becket. The Encounter restaurant, with its space-age interior by Disney Imagineering, ran from 1997 to 2013. The structure is a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument. from the studio

from the studio
Theme Building
— bring it home

Theme Building, 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 Theme Building

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

The Theme Building sits at the centre of Los Angeles International Airport, on a small landscaped island between the horseshoe of passenger terminals. It was completed in 1961, near the end of the airport's first jet-age expansion. The design was credited to a team led by William Pereira and Charles Luckman, with the African-American architect Paul R. Williams and the firm of Welton Becket. The building was designated a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument in 1992 and is the airport's most recognised structure.

— the stone

Two white parabolic arches cross at the top and reach into the ground at four feet, holding a glass-walled saucer 135 feet above the tarmac. The Googie style (futurist, open, optimistic) was the visual language of southern California in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The arches are steel sheathed in stucco, not concrete. A 2010 restoration repaired earthquake damage to the original truss and re-skinned the legs. The building reads as bone-white in the morning sun and bronze at dusk.

— informed by LA Conservancy
— the visit

The Theme Building is visible from any terminal road and from the in-bound flight path. Public access to the Encounter restaurant and the observation deck ended in 2013 and the upper levels are no longer open. The ground-level Bob Hope USO is open to military travellers. The building is best photographed from Sepulveda Boulevard on the south side of the airport, or from the central island itself when traffic permits a slow pass. Night photography lights the underside in blue and violet.

— where
United States · Los Angeles International Airport, Los Angeles, California
— elevation
38 m · 125 ft
— position
33.9444° N · 118.4036° 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.
0.3 km N
Tom Bradley International Terminal
terminal
at the lake
Encounter Restaurant (closed)
former restaurant
N
Theme Building
Tom Bradley International Terminal
Encounter Restaurant (closed)
— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Theme Building — and about bringing the piece home.
— about the place

At the centre of Los Angeles International Airport, on a landscaped island between the horseshoe of passenger terminals. It is visible from every terminal road and from in-bound aircraft on final approach.

Completed in 1961, near the end of LAX's first jet-age expansion. The structure was credited to a team led by Pereira and Luckman, with Paul R. Williams and Welton Becket on the design.

Googie, the futurist space-age idiom of southern California in the late 1950s. The two crossing parabolic arches are the most recognised example of the style at civic scale anywhere in the world.

Not currently. The Encounter restaurant and observation deck closed to the public in 2013 and the upper levels remain closed. The Bob Hope USO on the ground floor serves military travellers.

Yes. The Theme Building was designated a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument in 1992 and remains the visual emblem of the airport and a touchstone of mid-century California design.

— about the piece in your home

It travels well for anyone who grew up under the LAX flight path, worked at the airport, or loves Mid-century Los Angeles. A Small with a note from the studio carries cleanly.

The bone-white arch reads strongly with Mid-century Modern, Atomic-age, and minimalist Industrial interiors. It also pairs with Palm Springs desert-modern rooms and home bars done in walnut and brass.

Yes. The Mid-century revival is still strong, and the renewed interest in Googie and Atomic-age design, through Palm Springs Modernism Week and similar events, keeps the form in active conversation.

A single Large carries above a console. Over a sofa, a 4-tile or 9-tile Mural holds the room and lets the arches breathe at the right scale across the wall.

Yes. Order Dura Satin or Matte for either room. Both are scratch-resistant and tolerate steam; the colour lives in the ceramic surface and will not lift with cleaning.

Yes. Every piece in the WenderVista atlas comes from one studio in Knoxville, Tennessee, with Reid Wender as the curating eye. There is no outside licensing.

— if this one stayed with you

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