Wender·Vista
Glacier Peak Mission Mountains
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileMontana
the Mission Range, east of Flathead Lake

Glacier Peak Mission Mountains

— the last snow on the highest peak.

— 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

“Glacier Peak rises on the spine of the Mission Mountains east of Flathead Lake, holding snow into August in a normal year. The range is split. The west slope is the Mission Mountains Tribal Wilderness, the first tribally designated wilderness in the United States. The east slope is Forest Service wilderness. The peak is reached only on foot, through grizzly country.

from the studio
Glacier Peak Mission Mountains
— bring it home

Glacier Peak Mission Mountains, 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 Glacier Peak Mission Mountains

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

Glacier Peak is one of the high summits of the Mission Mountains of western Montana, rising above the Swan Valley between Flathead Lake and the Bob Marshall Wilderness. The Mission Range runs roughly fifty miles north to south, with McDonald Peak at 9,820 feet as the high point of the range. The west slope falls within the Flathead Reservation and is managed by the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes as the Mission Mountains Tribal Wilderness, designated in 1982. The east slope is Forest Service wilderness, designated in 1975.

— the silence

Both wildernesses are foot-and-horse access only, with no motors, no mountain bikes, and no roads crossing the range. The CSKT tribal wilderness closes its high-country grizzly zone above McDonald Peak each summer from July 15 through October 1, to protect the bears feeding on cutworm moths in the talus. The trails on the east slope leave from the Swan Valley and climb steeply through old-growth larch and spruce. The range stays quiet by design, and the silence at the high lakes is part of what the peaks give back.

— informed by CSKT Tribal Wilderness
— the season

Snow lies on Glacier Peak from October through July in a normal year, and the high cirques north of the summit hold small remnant ice fields into late summer. Trails to the east-slope lakes (Cold Lakes, Lindbergh Lake, Crescent Lake) open through June as the snow melts off. Wildflower bloom in the basins peaks in late July. The first new snow returns to the peaks in mid-September, and the Mission Mountains larches turn gold the last week of the month.

— where
United States · Lake and Missoula Counties, Montana
— within
Mission Mountains Wilderness
— position
47.4100° N · 113.9600° 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.
19 km N
McDonald Peak
range high point
30 km W
Flathead Lake
natural lake
8 km E
Swan Valley
valley corridor
25 km E
Bob Marshall Wilderness
wilderness area
N
Glacier Peak Mission Mountains
McDonald Peak
Flathead Lake
Swan Valley
Bob Marshall Wilderness
— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Glacier Peak Mission Mountains — and about bringing the piece home.
— about the place

Glacier Peak in the Missions stands at about nine thousand feet. McDonald Peak, twelve miles north along the same crest, is the range's high point at 9,820 feet and the most prominent summit on the spine.

The west slope of the range was designated by the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes as wilderness in 1982. It was the first tribally designated wilderness in the United States and covers about 91,000 acres.

From July 15 through October 1, the CSKT closes the country above 6,500 feet on McDonald Peak. Grizzly bears congregate on the talus to feed on cutworm moths, and the closure protects that feeding ground.

There is no road into the wilderness. Access is on foot from trailheads in the Swan Valley on the east side, or through the tribal wilderness on the west with a tribal recreation permit. The summit is an off-trail scramble.

Western larch dominates the lower slopes and turns gold in late September. Engelmann spruce, subalpine fir, and whitebark pine carry the higher elevations. Old-growth groves still stand in the more remote east-slope drainages.

— about the piece in your home

Yes. Many of our customers buy this for friends and family who pack into the Cold Lakes or Lindbergh Lake basins. The piece reads true to the country. A Medium with a handwritten note from the studio carries well.

The piece reads well in Mountain-modern rooms, in parkitecture interiors with timber and stone, and in quieter Scandi-influenced spaces where the snow and granite palette can hold a wall on its own.

A single Large reads well above a standard sofa. For longer walls a four-tile Mural carries the range's horizontal proportions, and a nine-tile Mural anchors a stairwell or great room.

Yes. Order the Dura Satin or Matte finish for any kitchen or bathroom installation. Both are scratch-resistant and clean with a microfibre cloth and water.

A dry microfibre cloth handles dust. For anything more, a damp microfibre with plain water lifts cooking residue or fingerprints. No sprays, no abrasive pads.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is painted in the studio's Voynich stained-glass and alcohol-ink language by Reid Wender. The work is not licensed from outside artists.

— if this one stayed with you

A few you might also love.

Hand-picked by the eye that found Sorapis. Same air, same kind of quiet.