Wender·Vista
Worlds of Fun
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileUnited States
on the north side of Kansas City, Missouri

Worlds of Fun

— — a park built around the eighty-day idea.

— 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

“An amusement park on the north side of Kansas City, opened in 1973 and laid out around Jules Verne's Around the World in Eighty Days. Five themed lands — Americana, Europa, Africa, Orient, and Scandinavia — fan out from a central lagoon. Mamba and Patriot run the steel-coaster line; Prowler and Timber Wolf keep the wooden one. The summer evenings carry the same sound from the midway every year, and the lake at the centre still holds the orange light of the parking-lot lamps after dark. — from the studio

from the studio
Worlds of Fun
— bring it home

Worlds of Fun, 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 Worlds of Fun

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

Worlds of Fun is a 235-acre amusement park on the north side of Kansas City, Missouri, opened on May 26, 1973. The park was developed by Lamar Hunt and themed around Jules Verne's 1872 novel Around the World in Eighty Days, with the grounds divided into five regional lands: Americana, Europa, Africa, Orient, and Scandinavia. Originally owned by Mid-America Enterprises and then Cedar Fair from 1995, the park became part of Six Flags Entertainment Corporation following the 2024 Cedar Fair-Six Flags merger.

— the year

The park operates seasonally, typically opening in April and closing in late October or early November. The summer schedule runs daily through Memorial Day, June, July, and August, with weekend-only operations on either side. The Halloween Haunt event runs Friday and Saturday nights through September and October and has been a fixture since 2000. The adjacent Oceans of Fun water park, opened in 1982 and now operated under combined admission, runs Memorial Day through Labor Day on its own seasonal hours.

— the visit

The park sits at 4545 Worlds of Fun Avenue, just off Interstate 435 at exit 54, about 15 minutes northeast of downtown Kansas City. Headline rides include Mamba, a 5,600-foot steel coaster opened in 1998 that still ranks among the longest in the country, and Prowler, a 2009 Great Coasters International wooden coaster routinely placed in industry top-ten polls. Timber Wolf, the 1989 wooden coaster, and Patriot, the 2006 inverted steel coaster, round out the major thrill line.

— where
United States · Kansas City, Missouri
— within
Worlds of Fun
— position
39.1747° N · 94.4844° 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.
at the lake
Oceans of Fun
water park
16 km SW
Downtown Kansas City
city centre
20 km NW
Kansas City International Airport
airport
N
Worlds of Fun
Oceans of Fun
Downtown Kansas City
Kansas City International Airport
— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Worlds of Fun — and about bringing the piece home.
— about the place

Worlds of Fun is on the north side of Kansas City, Missouri, at 4545 Worlds of Fun Avenue, just off Interstate 435 at exit 54. The park sits about 15 minutes northeast of downtown Kansas City.

Worlds of Fun opened on May 26, 1973. It was developed by Kansas City businessman Lamar Hunt and themed around Jules Verne's 1872 novel Around the World in Eighty Days, with the grounds divided into five regional lands.

Worlds of Fun is owned by Six Flags Entertainment Corporation following the 2024 merger of Cedar Fair and Six Flags. Cedar Fair had owned the park since 1995, when it acquired it from its second owner, Hunt Midwest Enterprises.

Mamba, a 5,600-foot steel coaster from 1998, and Prowler, a 2009 wooden coaster, are the headline rides. Patriot, a 2006 inverted steel coaster, and Timber Wolf, a 1989 wooden coaster, complete the major thrill line.

Worlds of Fun covers about 235 acres on the north side of Kansas City. The adjacent Oceans of Fun water park adds roughly another 60 acres and is operated under combined admission through Six Flags.

The park operates seasonally, typically from April through late October or early November. Daily operations run through the summer between Memorial Day and Labor Day, with weekend-only hours on either side. Halloween Haunt runs Friday and Saturday nights through autumn.

— about the piece in your home

It has been a meaningful gift for customers who spent Kansas City summers at the park. The piece carries the specific layout — Americana, Europa, the central lagoon — rather than reading as a generic amusement-park scene.

The jewel-tone palette and dusk light settle into Mid-century Modern, warm Maximalist, and nostalgic American interiors. It also reads well in a games room or family room without overpowering the surrounding decor.

Yes. Named-place nostalgia is a clear current direction in American decor, and a Kansas City landmark with five decades of family memory fits that line. The ceramic surface suits both wood-panel and clean-white wall treatments.

Above a standard sofa, a Large reads from across the room; a four-tile Mural fills the wall more fully; a nine-tile Mural becomes the room's anchor. Above a console, a Medium or Large is the usual choice.

Yes, in the Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and handle steam and splashes well. The Glossy finish is best kept to drier wall spaces and framed pieces.

A soft microfibre cloth and warm water are enough. The colour is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure, so it does not lift or fade with regular cleaning.

Yes. The image is original to Wender Studios, made in-house by curator Reid Wender. We do not license artwork in or out, and each tile is hand-finished in Knoxville, Tennessee.

— if this one stayed with you

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