Cotopaxi

Frederic Edwin Church

1862 · Oil on canvas · Detroit Institute of Arts

Size2:3 ratio

Frame

$59Unframed print · made to order

📦 Free shipping on every order — or upgrade to Express ($14.9) at checkout. Most orders arrive in ~4–8 business days (Express 2–4).

Complete the setHangs well with these two

3 × $59 at 16 × 24 in, unframed = $177 → $159.30 as a set · 10% included · free shipping

Choose different prints →

Giclée-printed to order on heavyweight matte fine-art paper

Ships worldwide in 3–6 business days after production

Arrives perfect or we reprint it — free

Secure checkout via Stripe

About this work

Artist: Frederic Edwin Church (1826–1900)
Year: 1862
Medium: Oil on canvas
Original size: 121.9 × 215.9 cm
Collection: Detroit Institute of Arts
Movement: Hudson River School

The volcano Cotopaxi erupts at the far left, pouring a vast plume of ash across a sky lit blood-orange by the rising sun, while a waterfall thunders into a gorge below and a lake lies still at the centre. Church had seen Cotopaxi on his South American journeys of 1853 and 1857, but this canvas, commissioned in 1862 by the New York collector James Lenox and first shown in 1863, combines details from several places into a statement about the forces that shape the earth: ash falling into water to become sediment, cliffs raised and worn away again. Painted during the Civil War, it was read by contemporaries as a parable of light against darkness. It is the culminating work of a series of at least ten Cotopaxi pictures Church painted. The Detroit Institute of Arts bought it in 1976.

This exhibition-poster edition shows the whole work beneath original typography set in-house. The original is in the public domain.

Where it works

An erupting volcano under a blood-orange sky with a waterfall and a still lake, a dramatic wide picture for a living room, study or den at 24×36 in black. A charcoal, deep blue or ochre wall; it glows under low evening light.

Style: Exhibition poster of a Hudson River School painting
Era: 19th century (1862)
Orientation: Portrait
Palette: cream & beige
Mood: calm
Rooms: living room, dining room, dorm room, hallway or entryway
Good gift for: housewarming, art lovers

Size. Prints at 12×18, 16×24, 24×36 in — 12×18 for a shelf, desk or a gallery-wall grid; 16×24 above a desk, console or in a hallway; 24×36 as the statement piece above a sofa or bed.

Framing. Exhibition posters sit best in a slim black frame with no mat — the typeset margin is the mat.

Pairing. Pairs as a set of three with other famous painting prints (10% off three or more).

Details & materials

• Exhibition poster — original, drawn in-house • Heavyweight matte fine-art paper, giclée printed at 300 DPI • Sizes: 12×18, 16×24, 24×36 in; 12×18 and 16×24 and 24×36 also available framed in black or natural wood • Made to order; colours may vary slightly from screen

Shipping & returns

Produced in 2–4 business days, then shipped from the facility nearest you. Delivery is typically 3–6 business days (US/UK/EU) and 5–12 worldwide. Because each print is made to order we don't take change-of-mind returns, but if it arrives damaged or flawed we'll reprint or refund it — no return needed. Full policy →

Is this the whole painting, or a crop?

The whole work, uncropped. The exhibition-poster edition sets the complete image above typography designed in-house.

Is Cotopaxi in the public domain?

Yes. Frederic Edwin Church (1826–1900) died more than 70 years ago and the work was published before 1929, so the painting itself is public domain. This print is a reproduction made from a high-resolution scan of the original, which is held by Detroit Institute of Arts.

What is it printed on?

Heavyweight matte fine-art paper with pigment inks, made to order in 12×18, 16×24 and 24×36 inches; the two larger sizes are also offered framed. Colours are matched to the scan, not brightened.

When was Cotopaxi painted, and in what medium?

Cotopaxi dates from 1862 and was made in oil on canvas; the original measures 121.9 × 215.9 cm.

What size works above a sofa or bed?

For a standard three-seat sofa or a queen bed, 24×36 inches reads as a single statement piece; 16×24 suits a narrower wall or a pairing. The print's proportions follow the original, so a landscape-format painting is wider than it is tall.

About this design

A museum-exhibition poster of Frederic Edwin Church's Cotopaxi — Cotopaxi — the erupting volcano under a blood-red sun, a waterfall plunging into a gorge below — shown whole and uncropped beneath gallery typography. Wonders of the New World: The Hudson River School, styled as a blockbuster exhibition print. A gallery-style exhibition poster: a celebrated public-domain artwork shown whole and uncropped beneath original exhibition typography set in-house — printed to order on heavyweight matte fine-art paper. Three sizes (12×18, 16×24, 24×36 in); the 16×24 and 24×36 are also offered framed. Part of the Madten Exhibition Posters Collection. — — — Printed to order and shipped by our production partner, Gelato.

Buy with confidence

The Madten promise

Gallery-grade archival giclée. Rich pigment inks on heavyweight fine-art paper (or gallery-wrapped canvas) — built to last, not a poster-shop print.

Arrives perfect or we reprint it — free. Every piece is made to order; if it shows up damaged or flawed we remake it, no return needed.

Free worldwide shipping. Made & shipped from the facility nearest you — most orders arrive in ~4–8 business days.

Secure checkout. Payments handled by Stripe; we never see or store your card.

Also available as