shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileNew York

on the west shore of Seneca Lake in the Finger Lakes

Geneva on the Lake terraces

— an Italian garden the lake answers 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

“An Italianate villa above the west shore of Seneca Lake, modeled in 1914 on the Villa Lancellotti at Frascati. Formal terraced gardens (boxwood parterres, classical urns, a long central allée) step down toward the water. The property at 1011 Lochland Road has been a private residence, a monastery, and is now a small resort. The lake answers the geometry of the terraces with its own flat plane.

from the studio

— bring it home

Geneva on the Lake terraces, 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 Geneva on the Lake terraces

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

Geneva on the Lake stands above the west shore of Seneca Lake at 1011 Lochland Road, on the southern edge of the village of Geneva, New York. The villa was designed by Lewis Pilcher and completed in 1914 for Byron Nester, modeled on the 17th-century Villa Lancellotti at Frascati outside Rome. Its terraced formal gardens descend roughly four levels toward the lake, with boxwood parterres, classical urns, and a long central allée. The property served as a Capuchin monastery from 1949 until 1974, and now operates as a small lakeside resort.

— informed by Geneva on the Lake, Wikipedia

— the water

Seneca Lake is the largest of the eleven Finger Lakes, 38 miles long and as deep as 618 feet, the deepest body of water entirely within New York State. The villa's gardens descend toward its west shore. The lake holds heat into late autumn, which is why this section of the Finger Lakes was first planted to vines in the 1860s; today more than thirty wineries ring the lake. From the upper terrace the water reads as a flat horizontal in any season, an Italian garden's perfect borrowed view.

— informed by Finger Lakes Tourism

— the visit

The property operates year-round as a resort, with public terrace tours scheduled on summer afternoons. The villa's formal gardens are accessible to overnight guests and to booked visitors. The address is 1011 Lochland Road on NY-14, about a mile south of downtown Geneva. Hobart and William Smith Colleges sit at the north end of the lake, with the city centre between. The classic photograph of the long allée descending to the water is from the upper terrace in late afternoon, when the lake light is at its softest.

— informed by Geneva on the Lake visit

— where

United States · Geneva, Ontario County, New York

— elevation

134 m · 440 ft

— position

42.8431° N · 76.9700° 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.

2 km N

Hobart and William Smith Colleges

lakeside campus

1 km N

Belhurst Castle

Romanesque lakeside estate

25 km S

Sampson State Park

lakeshore park

45 km S

Watkins Glen State Park

gorge waterfall park

Geneva on the Lake terraces

Hobart and William Smith Colleges

Belhurst Castle

Sampson State Park

Watkins Glen State Park

— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Geneva on the Lake terraces — and about bringing the piece home.

— about the place

Lewis Pilcher, completed in 1914 for Byron Nester. The villa was modeled on the 17th-century Villa Lancellotti at Frascati, outside Rome, one of the few American houses built in direct imitation of an Italian Renaissance original.

Four descending levels of formal Italian garden between the villa and Seneca Lake. The design includes boxwood parterres, classical stone urns, and a central allée that draws the eye from the upper terrace down to the water below.

As much as 618 feet, the deepest body of water entirely within New York State. The lake is 38 miles long and the largest of the eleven Finger Lakes. Its depth moderates the climate enough to support the surrounding wine industry.

From 1949 to 1974, when it was occupied by Capuchin friars. The order maintained the gardens and altered some interiors. The current resort use began after the property was sold and restored in the late 1970s.

As an overnight guest at the resort, or on a daytime garden tour during summer. The address is 1011 Lochland Road, on NY-14 about a mile south of downtown Geneva, New York. Tours are scheduled through genevaonthelake.com.

— about the piece in your home

It has been a common gift for Finger Lakes wine-country regulars, Hobart and William Smith alumni, and gardeners who plant in the formal European tradition. A Medium framed in cream-painted moulding suits a dining or sitting room.

The pale stone and lake-blue palette suits Coastal-classical, French Country, and Italianate Traditional rooms. It also reads in Minimal-Mediterranean interiors, where one strong horizontal piece anchors a wall of plaster or limewash.

A Large fits above a console table. Above a sofa, a 4-tile Mural in landscape format carries the full descent of the terraces; a 9-tile Mural gives the villa, the gardens, and the lake horizon their proper proportions.

Yes. The Dura Satin and Matte finishes are made for kitchen backsplashes and bathroom walls. The colour is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure, and holds up to steam and routine cleaning.

A soft microfibre cloth and warm water. Avoid ammonia, abrasive pads, and bleach. The thin glossy finish on framed pieces and the satin or matte on installed pieces both clean to original with a weekly wipe.

Yes. Reid Wender is the curator; the Geneva on the Lake painting was made in-house at our Knoxville, Tennessee studio in our stained-glass and alcohol-ink visual language. We do not license or resell other studios' work.

— if this one stayed with you

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