shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileUnited States

across the Alalakeiki Channel, southwest of Maui

Kahoolawe

— — the island the sea is learning to give back.

— 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

— 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 smallest of the eight main Hawaiian islands, low and reddish against the channel southwest of Maui. For half a century it was a U.S. Navy bombing range; since 1994 it has been held in trust as a reserve for a future sovereign Native Hawaiian entity. Volunteers replant pili grass and 'a'ali'i. The island is uninhabited and access is restricted.

from the studio

— bring it home

Kahoolawe, 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 Kahoolawe

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

Kaho'olawe lies about eleven kilometres southwest of Maui across the Alalakeiki Channel, in Maui County, Hawai'i. It covers roughly 116 square kilometres and rises to 452 metres at Pu'u Moaulanui, the higher of its two small summits. The island is uninhabited and has been administered as the Kaho'olawe Island Reserve by the Kaho'olawe Island Reserve Commission since 1994, when the United States Navy returned the island to the State of Hawai'i. It is held in trust for a future sovereign Native Hawaiian governing entity.

— informed by Wikipedia — Kaho'olawe, Kaho'olawe Island Reserve Commission

— the silence

The Reserve is closed to the general public. Access is granted only to KIRC staff, contractors, and approved cultural-access groups, and visitors must travel by chartered boat from Maui under permit. Unexploded ordnance from five decades of naval bombing still remains across roughly a quarter of the surface, and only a portion of the island has been cleared for foot traffic. The channel between Maui and Kaho'olawe is one of the windiest in the archipelago, and crossings are weather-dependent.

— informed by KIRC — Access

— the year

The Protect Kaho'olawe 'Ohana began organised landings in 1976, and their work led directly to the 1990 executive order that halted the bombing and to the 1994 transfer back to Hawai'i. Restoration is slow. Volunteers have planted hundreds of thousands of native pili grass, naio, and 'a'ali'i seedlings, and the island still loses topsoil to trade winds where the vegetation has not yet returned. Cultural-access trips run most months, weather and ordnance clearance permitting.

— informed by Wikipedia — Protect Kaho'olawe 'Ohana

— where

United States · Maui County, Hawai'i

— within

Kaho'olawe Island Reserve

— elevation

452 m · 1,483 ft

— position

20.5500° N · 156.6000° 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.

11 km NE

Maui

island

30 km NW

Lana'i

island

12 km N

Molokini

islet

35 km NE

Haleakalā

volcano

Kahoolawe

Maui

Lana'i

Molokini

Haleakalā

— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Kahoolawe — and about bringing the piece home.

— about the place

About eleven kilometres southwest of Maui across the Alalakeiki Channel, in Maui County, Hawai'i. It is the smallest of the eight main Hawaiian islands and lies in the lee of Maui's Haleakalā volcano.

Access is restricted to staff of the Kaho'olawe Island Reserve Commission and to approved cultural-access groups travelling by chartered boat under permit. The island is not open to general tourism.

The U.S. Navy used Kaho'olawe for live-fire training from 1941 until 1990, when President George H. W. Bush halted operations. Unexploded ordnance still remains across roughly a quarter of the surface today.

The federal government transferred title to the State of Hawai'i in 1994. The island is held in trust by the Kaho'olawe Island Reserve Commission for a future sovereign Native Hawaiian entity.

About 116 square kilometres, roughly the size of Nantucket. Its highest point is Pu'u Moaulanui, at 452 metres, near the southern end of the long ridge that runs down the centre.

The Kaho'olawe Island Reserve Commission and volunteer organisations, including the Protect Kaho'olawe 'Ohana, replant native species and clear ordnance. Restoration has continued for three decades and is expected to continue indefinitely.

— about the piece in your home

It has carried well for customers with family on Maui or with a connection to Native Hawaiian restoration work. A Small or Medium with a handwritten note from the studio is often the right shape.

The reddish earth and channel blues sit comfortably in Coastal-modern, Pacific-traditional, and warm-Minimalist rooms. The piece pairs with koa, rattan, and pale linen without competing for the eye.

Indigenous Pacific palettes have moved into mainland design over the last several seasons, anchored on volcanic reds, ocean blues, and natural fibres. The tile reads as a heritage piece inside that palette.

A single Large reads well above a console or sideboard. Above a full sofa, a four-tile Mural carries the wall; a nine-tile Mural suits long walls in great rooms and lanai installations.

Yes, with the Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and suited to vertical installations in showers, backsplashes, and outdoor lanai walls.

A soft microfibre cloth and water are all the surface needs. No solvents, no abrasives. The colour lives in the surface and will not lift with normal cleaning.

Yes. Every piece is original work by Reid Wender, hand-finished in our Knoxville studio. We do not license images in or out.

— if this one stayed with you