El Altar from Riobamba, Ecuador

Frederic Edwin Church's sketch captures the volcanic landscape of the Ecuadorian Andes during his South American expedition. This rapid compositional study—with its layered mountain forms, atmospheric perspective, and notational handling—demonstrates Church's method of gathering visual material for later studio paintings. The work exemplifies nineteenth-century landscape artists' engagement with unexplored terrain, combining topographic observation with romantic sensibility. Church's detailed field studies became the foundation for his monumental exhibited canvases, establishing him as a leading figure in American landscape painting and the Hudson River School.