Wender·Vista
Gateway Arch
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileUnited States
on the west bank of the Mississippi in St. Louis

Gateway Arch

— a curve cut from the river light.

— 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

“Saarinen's stainless-steel catenary rises 630 feet from the west bank of the Mississippi, the tallest arch in the world and the centerpiece of Gateway Arch National Park. The river runs broad and brown below; the old Eads Bridge holds the downstream view. Morning light turns the steel pink; by noon it disappears against the sky and only the curve remains. from the studio

from the studio
Gateway Arch
— bring it home

Gateway Arch, 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 Gateway Arch

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 Gateway Arch is a stainless-steel catenary curve rising 630 feet (192 metres) on the west bank of the Mississippi River in St. Louis, Missouri. Designed by Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen, it was constructed between 1963 and 1965 and dedicated in 1968 as the centerpiece of what was then the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial. In 2018 the surrounding grounds were redesignated Gateway Arch National Park, making it the smallest national park in the United States system at 91 acres.

— the light

The Arch is clad in 886 tons of polished stainless steel, the largest single use of the material in any structure. The surface reads silver at noon, pink at sunrise, and copper in the last twenty minutes before the sun drops behind the Old Courthouse. On overcast days the curve takes the colour of the river and almost disappears into the sky. From the Illinois bank at East St. Louis, the silhouette frames the downtown skyline at any hour.

— the visit

Gateway Arch National Park is open daily except 25 December. A tram with eight five-person capsules climbs the inside of each leg to the observation deck at the top, where sixteen narrow windows look west over downtown and east over the Mississippi and Illinois. Tram tickets are timed and sell out in summer; book through the National Park Service. The visitor center beneath the Arch holds the Museum at the Gateway Arch, free to enter, covering the westward expansion.

— where
United States · St. Louis, Missouri
— within
Gateway Arch National Park
— elevation
192 m · 630 ft
— position
38.6247° N · 90.1848° 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.
1 km W
Old Courthouse
federal courthouse
1 km N
Eads Bridge
river bridge
1 km SW
Busch Stadium
baseball stadium
13 km E
Cahokia Mounds
ancient earthworks
N
Gateway Arch
Old Courthouse
Eads Bridge
Busch Stadium
Cahokia Mounds
— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Gateway Arch — and about bringing the piece home.
— about the place

630 feet, or 192 metres, measured from the ground to the top of the curve. The width at the base equals the height, a true equilateral catenary. It is the tallest arch in the world.

Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen won a 1947 design competition for the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial. He died of a brain tumour in 1961, before construction began. His firm completed the project under partner Hannskarl Bandel, the structural engineer.

Construction ran from February 1963 to October 1965, when the final keystone section was set in place. The Arch and grounds were dedicated on 25 May 1968. The tram to the observation deck opened the same year.

Yes. The surrounding 91 acres were redesignated Gateway Arch National Park in February 2018, replacing the older Jefferson National Expansion Memorial designation. It is the smallest national park in the United States system.

Yes. A tram of eight five-person capsules climbs each leg to an observation deck 630 feet up, with sixteen narrow windows facing west over St. Louis and east across the Mississippi. Tickets are timed and book through the National Park Service.

— about the piece in your home

It has carried well for customers with St. Louis roots, for graduates of Washington University and SLU, and for Cardinals families. The Medium suits a home office; the Large reads as the city's signature above a console.

The piece reads silver-and-river: cool stainless, slate, river-brown. It sits well in Mid-Century Modern interiors (which Saarinen helped define), in Industrial-modern lofts, and in restrained Minimalist rooms that want one architectural focal point.

A single Large at 24 inches anchors a console; above a standard sofa a 4-tile Mural or a 9-tile Mural holds the wall. The vertical Arch composition also reads well as a Triptych in a narrow hallway.

Yes, in the Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and shrug off moisture; the colour lives in the ceramic surface itself. The Glossy finish suits display walls away from steam.

A microfibre cloth and water. The colour is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure, so it does not lift with normal cleaning. Avoid abrasive pads on the Glossy finish.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is painted in the studio's stained-glass and alcohol-ink language by Reid Wender, the curator. No licensing, no third-party imagery. One eye, one atlas.

— if this one stayed with you

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