Colombia, Barranquilla, Two Houses by Frederic Edwin Church, 1853

2026-05-08T00:45:27+01:00

Colombia, Barranquilla, Two Houses (1853) by Frederic Edwin Church captures a quiet, sunlit corner of a Colombian street with the intimacy of a firsthand sketch and the refinement of a master painter. Church—one of the most celebrated American landscape artists of the 19th century—traveled through South America in the 1850s, drawn to the region’s tropical light, vernacular architecture, and everyday rhythms. Here, instead of a sweeping panorama, he focuses on two humble dwellings and the glow that pools across their weathered walls, distilling a moment where place, people, and atmosphere meet.

This listing offers a museum-quality fine art print of Church’s painting, produced on acid-free archival paper or artist’s cotton canvas. Choose from a range of sizes to suit your space. Framing and matting are available, with multiple finishes curated to complement the artwork’s warm palette. The Unique Maps Co. can also add personalized captions or dates, adjust borders for easy framing, and help with custom dimensions to create a piece that fits perfectly in your home or office.

About the artist: Frederic Edwin Church (1826–1900) was a leading figure of 19th-century American painting, renowned for luminous light effects and meticulous natural detail. His travels in the Americas informed a body of work that balanced careful observation with a painter’s sense of wonder. In the early 1850s, Church honed the precise, radiant style that would define his career, and this painting belongs to that formative, exploratory period.

Why this subject matters: Set in Barranquilla, the work records a slice of urban life in mid-19th-century Colombia—a moment of stillness outside two traditional houses. Rather than dramatize nature, Church turns his attention to architecture and human presence. The inclusion of a figure at the doorway hints at the rhythms of domestic life and the social fabric of the street, grounding the scene in the realities of everyday existence. It’s a rare and compelling look at how a celebrated landscape painter engaged with the built environment of the tropics.

Color, style, and what you’ll love on your wall: The palette glows with sun-warmed oranges, siennas, and soft browns, offset by gentle beige plaster and touches of muted green beneath a pale blue sky. Meticulous brushwork brings the textured thatch and time-worn surfaces to life, while the clean geometry of the buildings plays against the organic foliage. The composition layers foreground, midground, and background to create depth, inviting your eye down the small stretch of street and into the play of light and shadow. It’s an understated, elegant image—rich in atmosphere yet calm in mood—that complements neutral, earthy interiors and adds warmth to modern, rustic, or coastal spaces.

A thoughtful gift for travelers and architecture lovers alike, this print makes a distinctive present for housewarmings, birthdays, Christmas, Mother’s or Father’s Day, or for anyone with fond memories of Colombia’s Caribbean coast. Whether adorning a living room, study, or hallway, it’s a subtle conversation piece that brings history, light, and a sense of place to your walls.