View of Cotopaxi
1857
oil
From the collection of Art Institute of Chicago
1857
oil
From the collection of Art Institute of Chicago
You see a snow-capped volcano glowing pink at sunrise, steam rising from its crater. A river winds through green foothills, and tiny figures stand near a waterfall. Church painted this after hiking to the real Cotopaxi in Ecuador. He carried a sketchbook and a thermometer, measuring light and temperature to get the colors right. The volcano was a symbol—some saw it as proof of God’s power, others as a force of nature science could explain. For more landscapes built from field notes, look up the technique called *glazing*.
