Wender·Vista
Owasco Lake at Auburn
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileNew York
at the north end of one of the Finger Lakes

Owasco Lake at Auburn

— — the long thin lake the city sits on top of.

— 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

“Owasco Lake runs roughly eleven miles south from the foot of Auburn, one of the narrower Finger Lakes and the source of the city's drinking water. From the lakefront park at Emerson, the view runs straight down the lake between the wooded ridges that frame it. The Owasco outlet runs north from here through Auburn, past the mills and the old Seward house, on its way to the Seneca River. from the studio

from the studio
Owasco Lake at Auburn
— bring it home

Owasco Lake at Auburn, 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 Owasco Lake at Auburn

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

Owasco Lake is one of the eleven Finger Lakes of central New York, running about 11 miles north to south and reaching depths near 177 feet. The city of Auburn, in Cayuga County, sits at the lake's northern foot, at an elevation of roughly 711 feet. The lake drains north through the Owasco River, which once powered the mills that grew Auburn into an industrial town in the nineteenth century, and continues on to the Seneca River and the Oswego watershed.

— the water

The lake is the drinking-water source for Auburn and the town of Owasco, which has shaped public attention on it for decades. Algal blooms in recent summers prompted the Cayuga County Health Department and the Owasco Watershed Lake Association to put treatment and monitoring in place. The lake is glacially carved like the other Finger Lakes, deep relative to its width, and the cold deeper water is what keeps a small lake-trout fishery alive at the south end through the warm months.

— the visit

The most direct view of the lake from Auburn is at Emerson Park, on the north shore, a Cayuga County park with a beach, the historic Merry-Go-Round Playhouse, and a long pier into the lake. Owasco Lake State Park sits at the south end near Moravia, about 25 miles down the lake. The city of Auburn itself holds the Harriet Tubman National Historical Park and the William Seward House, both within a mile of the lake's outlet — which threads the lake's quiet to the city's history.

— where
United States · Auburn, Cayuga County, New York
— elevation
217 m · 711 ft
— position
42.8864° N · 76.5311° E
— 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 S
Emerson Park
lakefront park
2 km N
Harriet Tubman National Historical Park
national historical park
2 km N
Seward House Museum
historic house
16 km E
Skaneateles Lake
Finger Lake
N
Owasco Lake at Auburn
Emerson Park
Harriet Tubman National Historical Park
Seward House Museum
Skaneateles Lake
— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Owasco Lake at Auburn — and about bringing the piece home.
— about the place

In Cayuga County, central New York, with the city of Auburn at its north foot. It is one of the eleven Finger Lakes, sitting between Skaneateles Lake to the east and Cayuga Lake to the west, about 25 miles southwest of Syracuse.

Owasco Lake runs roughly 11 miles north to south and reaches a maximum depth near 177 feet. It is one of the narrower Finger Lakes, which gives it the long, channeled view that frames Auburn's south-facing lakefront.

Yes. The lake supplies drinking water to the city of Auburn and the town of Owasco. Both municipalities operate treatment plants on its northern shore, and the Owasco Watershed Lake Association monitors water quality across the basin.

Auburn sits at the lake's northern foot, where the Owasco River begins. The river once powered the mills that built the city in the nineteenth century, and the lake remains the source of Auburn's drinking water today.

The Harriet Tubman National Historical Park and the William Seward House Museum are both within a mile of the lake's outlet in Auburn. Tubman lived in Auburn from the 1850s until her death in 1913; Seward was Lincoln's Secretary of State.

Emerson Park, on the north shore at Auburn, has a public beach and a long pier. Owasco Lake State Park sits at the south end near Moravia. Boat launches and small marinas are spaced along both sides of the lake.

— about the piece in your home

It has been a meaningful gift for our customers who grew up in Auburn, summered on Owasco, or have family in Cayuga County. A Small or Medium with a handwritten note from the studio carries the feeling of the home lake.

The cool water blues and ridge greens of the artwork sit well in Lakehouse-traditional, quiet Minimalist, and craftsman-leaning rooms. It also reads cleanly against pale oak, white wainscoting, or a soft slate-grey wall.

Yes. Biophilic design has moved past generic nature motifs toward specific, named landscapes. A particular Finger Lake reads as considered rather than decorative, which is where the trend has gone.

Above a standard sofa, a single Large reads well centered, or a 4-tile Mural for more presence. Above a long console table, a 9-tile Mural in a 3 by 3 grid gives the lake the horizontal room it asks for.

Yes, with the Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and well suited to vertical installation in showers, backsplashes, or above a bath. The Glossy finish is reserved for framed wall pieces in dry rooms.

A soft microfibre cloth and clean water. No solvents, no abrasive pads. The colour lives in the ceramic surface beneath a thin glossy finish, so household dust and splashes wipe away without affecting the artwork.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is original to Wender Studios, painted in our distinctive stained-glass and alcohol-ink visual language, with no third-party licensing. Reid Wender curates the atlas and signs off on every place we paint.

— if this one stayed with you

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