Wender·Vista
Lexington
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileUnited States
in the Bluegrass, north-central Kentucky

Lexington

— — black fences, white barns, green to the horizon.

— 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 seat of Fayette County and the heart of the Bluegrass region of Kentucky, with about 320,000 residents and a working-horse-farm landscape that runs all the way to the city limits. Black plank fences cross long low hills of fescue and bluegrass, white-painted barns hold the line of the ridges, and the karst limestone underfoot is the reason the grass grows the way it does and the thoroughbreds run the way they run. Keeneland's racing meets, the Kentucky Horse Park, and Transylvania University sit in easy reach of the courthouse square. from the studio

from the studio
Lexington
— bring it home

Lexington, 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 Lexington

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

Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky, with about 320,000 residents, and serves as the seat of Fayette County. It sits in the centre of the Inner Bluegrass region at roughly 298 metres elevation, on a plateau of weathered Ordovician limestone that gives the region its distinctive fescue-and-bluegrass pasture. The city was founded in 1775 and named for the Battle of Lexington in Massachusetts; it has been a centre of thoroughbred breeding and racing for more than two centuries.

— the stone

The Inner Bluegrass sits on a dome of Ordovician limestone roughly 450 million years old, weathered into a gently rolling karst plain with thin, calcium-rich soil. That calcium is the practical reason the region produces thoroughbred racehorses: it builds strong bone in foals raised on Bluegrass pasture. The same limestone shapes the cave systems, the spring-fed creeks, and the dry-stone fences laid by Scots-Irish and enslaved African-American masons through the 18th and 19th centuries along the back roads of Fayette and Bourbon counties.

— the visit

Keeneland, west of the city on Versailles Road, runs spring and autumn race meets each April and October and hosts the world's largest thoroughbred auction year-round; gates open for the morning workouts. The Kentucky Horse Park, on Iron Works Pike, is open daily and home to the International Museum of the Horse. The Mary Todd Lincoln House and the Henry Clay estate Ashland anchor the downtown and east-side historic districts. April and October hold the loveliest weather and the busiest race calendars.

— where
United States · Lexington, Fayette County, Kentucky
— elevation
298 m · 978 ft
— position
38.0406° N · 84.5037° 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.
10 km W
Keeneland
racecourse
12 km N
Kentucky Horse Park
equestrian park
3 km E
Ashland
historic estate
20 km W
Versailles
Bluegrass town
N
Lexington
Keeneland
Kentucky Horse Park
Ashland
Versailles
— common questions

What people ask.

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

In north-central Kentucky at the heart of the Inner Bluegrass region, about 130 kilometres east of Louisville and 130 kilometres south of Cincinnati. It is the seat of Fayette County and the state's second-largest city.

Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis) carries a bluish-purple seedhead when it grows tall in late spring, and in early-morning light the rolling pastures around Lexington read with that soft blue cast. The name has held since the 18th century.

The Inner Bluegrass sits on Ordovician limestone that releases calcium into the thin overlying soil. Foals raised on Bluegrass pasture build dense, strong bone, and the region's geology has made it the centre of thoroughbred breeding for two centuries.

A thoroughbred racecourse and sales company west of Lexington on Versailles Road, opened in 1936. It runs racing meets each April and October and hosts the world's largest thoroughbred auctions throughout the year.

April for the spring Keeneland meet, dogwood and redbud bloom, and the new foals on the farms; October for the autumn meet, clear cool days, and the bourbon-country foliage. Both months are also the busiest and require booking ahead.

Lexington was founded in 1775, named for the Battle of Lexington in Massachusetts fought earlier that year. It was one of the earliest American settlements west of the Appalachians and became Kentucky's leading city before Louisville overtook it.

— about the piece in your home

Yes. Bluegrass natives, thoroughbred owners, and University of Kentucky alumni often respond to the piece warmly. A Small or Medium with a handwritten note from the studio reads as considered rather than generic.

The pasture-green and white-barn palette settles into traditional Southern, equestrian, and warm farmhouse-modern interiors. It also reads well in rooms with mahogany, leather, and tartan or houndstooth textiles.

Yes. The current equestrian-modern movement — long lines, plaster walls, brass and leather, restrained colour — pairs naturally with the piece's Bluegrass palette and quiet sense of place.

A single Large reads at arm's length above a console; above a sofa, a 4-tile Mural carries the wall, and a 9-tile Mural anchors a larger room without crowding the seating.

Yes, in the Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both resist scratches and water and are suited to backsplashes, shower walls, and any vertical installation in a humid room.

A soft microfibre cloth and clean water. No abrasives and no chemical cleaners; the colour lives in the ceramic surface and needs nothing more.

Yes. Every piece in the WenderVista atlas is curated by Reid Wender and produced in our family studio in Knoxville, Tennessee. There is no licensing and no second source.

— if this one stayed with you

A few you might also love.

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