Wender·Vista
Yellowstone bison crossing Lamar (Montana side)
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileMontana
above the Northeast Entrance, where the Lamar opens out

Yellowstone bison crossing Lamar (Montana side)

— the herd that decides when the road moves.

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

In the upper Lamar, the herd has the right of way. Coming in from Silver Gate on the Northeast Entrance Road, a single bull can stop a line of cars for twenty minutes; a whole crossing herd can stop it for an hour. The valley holds one of the largest free-ranging bison populations in the country, and the road runs through their country, not the other way around.

from the studio
Yellowstone bison crossing Lamar (Montana side)
— bring it home

Yellowstone bison crossing Lamar (Montana side), 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 Yellowstone bison crossing Lamar (Montana side)

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 Lamar Valley sits in the northeast corner of Yellowstone, reached from the Montana side through Silver Gate and Cooke City along U.S. 212. The road drops in along Soda Butte Creek and opens onto a broad glaciated trough at about 6,500 feet, often called America's Serengeti for its concentration of bison, elk, pronghorn, and wolves. The Northeast Entrance, the smallest of the park's five gates, stays open to wheeled vehicles year-round on the stretch from Gardiner through Mammoth and Tower to Cooke City.

the silence

Before dawn the valley empties of cars and the sound goes down to wind, water moving over stones in Soda Butte Creek, and the low knock of bison on the move. Wolf-watchers gather at the pull-offs near Slough Creek and the Confluence with spotting scopes; nobody talks above a low voice. By eight the buses arrive and the silence breaks. The half-hour before sunrise is the one most photographers and biologists drive in for, and it is the only time the valley sounds like itself.

— informed by Yellowstone wolves (NPS)
the season

Bison are in the Lamar year-round, but their visibility shifts with the calendar. In late April and May the rust-coloured calves arrive, called red dogs by locals, and the herds string out across the valley floor. July and August bring the rut, with bulls bellowing and tearing wallows in the dust. By November snow has closed U.S. 212 east of Cooke City, but the Northeast Entrance Road from Gardiner through Mammoth and Tower stays plowed and drivable all winter.

— informed by Yellowstone bison (NPS)
where
United States · Yellowstone National Park, Northeast Entrance
within
Yellowstone National Park
elevation
1,981 m · 6,500 ft
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.
5 km E
Soda Butte Creek
tributary creek
12 km W
Slough Creek
wolf-watching valley
25 km W
Tower Fall
waterfall
50 km W
Mammoth Hot Springs
travertine terraces
15 km E
Cooke City
gateway town
35 km NE
Beartooth Pass
high alpine highway
N
Yellowstone bison crossing Lamar (Montana side)
Soda Butte Creek
Slough Creek
Tower Fall
Mammoth Hot Springs
Cooke City
Beartooth Pass
common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Yellowstone bison crossing Lamar (Montana side) — and about bringing the piece home.
about the place

In the northeast corner of Yellowstone National Park, reached on the Montana side through Silver Gate and Cooke City along U.S. 212, or from the north through Gardiner and Mammoth Hot Springs.

For the density and visibility of large mammals: bison, elk, pronghorn, bighorn sheep, grizzly and black bears, and the reintroduced wolf packs that have run the valley since 1995.

The park population runs between roughly 3,500 and 6,000 animals depending on the year, the largest free-ranging herd of plains bison on public land in the United States.

Whenever they want. Crossings spike in early morning and late afternoon and during the July rut. Park rules require drivers to stay in vehicles and give the herd unhurried space.

The stretch from Gardiner through Mammoth and Tower to Cooke City is the only road in Yellowstone kept open to wheeled vehicles all winter. The U.S. 212 stretch east of Cooke City closes by November.

Wolves were reintroduced to the Lamar in 1995. Several packs still range the valley, and the pull-offs near Slough Creek and the Confluence have become the most reliable wolf-watching points in North America.

The valley floor sits at roughly 6,500 feet. The Northeast Entrance at Silver Gate climbs to about 7,400 feet before the road drops into Cooke City over the next ridge.

about the piece in your home

Yes. Lamar guides, biologists, and wolf-watchers have a deep loyalty to this valley. A Medium or Large with a handwritten note from the studio reads as place, not as souvenir.

Mountain-modern, Western-modern, and Lodge palettes. The piece pairs with raw wood, hide, and iron; the stained-glass colour adds a jewel-tone lift against the heavy materials a lodge interior usually carries.

Yes. Bison and herd imagery have moved into both palettes over the last few years, and a stained-glass treatment reads as art rather than as wildlife illustration, which is the point of difference.

A single Large reads cleanly above a sixty-inch console. Above a standard sofa, the four-tile Mural holds the wall; over a long sectional or a great-room mantel, the nine-tile Mural carries the scale.

Yes. Order the Dura Satin or Matte finish for any wet or high-touch room. The colour is slowly infused into the ceramic surface beneath a thin protective finish, so humidity does not affect it.

A microfibre cloth and warm water. No abrasives, no ammonia, no scouring pads. The colour lives in the tile itself, so the surface cleans the way good ceramic cleans.

Yes. Every piece in the WenderVista atlas is curated and finished in our Knoxville studio. We do not licence the work and the design exists nowhere else.

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