Cotopaxi (1855)

Frederic Edwin Church

1855 · Oil on canvas · Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC

Size2:3 ratio

Frame

$59Unframed print · made to order

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Complete the setHangs well with these two

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

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

Ships worldwide in 3–6 business days after production

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About this work

Artist: Frederic Edwin Church (1826–1900)
Year: 1855
Medium: Oil on canvas
Original size: 71.1 × 107 cm
Collection: Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC
Movement: Hudson River School

Cotopaxi, the great snow-covered volcano of Ecuador, rises serene above a green highland valley with a hacienda in the middle distance. This is one of Church's earliest treatments of a subject he would return to for a decade, painted in 1855 after his first journey to South America in 1853, which he made with his patron Cyrus Field using Alexander von Humboldt's Views of the Cordilleras as a guidebook. The composition follows Humboldt's own engraving of the mountain, and the hacienda is one where Humboldt had stayed in 1802. Church waited a full day near it for the clouds to clear. American critics complained that the icy flanks were too sharp and lacked atmospheric haze, not understanding how clear the thin Andean air is. The painting, made as a keepsake of the trip for Field, is in the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington.

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

Where it works

A serene snow-covered volcano above a green highland valley with a hacienda, calmer than the 1862 eruption, for a bedroom, study or hallway at 16×24 or 24×36 in black or natural oak. A sage, cream or pale blue wall; hang the two Cotopaxis together.

Style: Exhibition poster of a Hudson River School painting
Era: 19th century (1855)
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 Smithsonian American Art Museum.

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 1855 and was made in oil on canvas; the original measures 71.1 × 107 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 (1855) — the snow-capped volcano serene above green meadows and a hacienda in a clear Andean light — 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.

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