Mount Vesuvius at Midnight, 1868 Albert Bierstadt (1830-1902)

We create our paintings with museum quality and covering the highest academic standards. Once we get your order, it will be entirely hand-painted with oil on canvas. All the materials we use are the highest level, being totally artist graded painting materials and linen canvas.

We will add 1.6" (4 cm) additional blank canvas all over the painting for stretching.

High quality and detailing in every inch are time consuming. The reproduction of Albert Bierstadt also needs time to dry in order to be completely ready for shipping, as this is crucial to not be damaged during transportation.
Based on the size, level of detail and complexity we need 8-9 weeks to complete the process.

In case the delivery date needs to be extended in time, or we are overloaded with requests, there will be an email sent to you sharing the new timelines of production and delivery.

TOPofART wants to remind you to keep patient, in order to get you the highest quality, being our mission to fulfill your expectations.

We not stretch and frame our oil paintings due to several reasons:
Painting reproduction is a high quality expensive product, which we cannot risk to damage by sending it being stretched.
Also, there are postal restrictions, regarding the size of the shipment.
Additionally, due to the dimensions of the stretched canvas, the shipment price may exceed the price of the product itself.

You can stretch and frame your painting in your local frame-shop.

Once the painting Mount Vesuvius at Midnight is ready and dry, it will be shipped to your delivery address. The canvas will be rolled-up in a secure postal tube.

We offer free shipping as well as paid express transportation services.

After adding your artwork to the shopping cart, you will be able to check the delivery price using the Estimate Shipping and Tax tool.

The paintings we create are only of museum quality. Our academy graduated artists will never allow a compromise in the quality and detail of the ordered painting. TOPofART do not work, and will never allow ourselves to work with low quality studios from the Far East. We are based in Europe, and quality is our highest priority.

Albert Bierstadt’s "Mount Vesuvius at Midnight" (1868) is not just a painting of a volcano. It’s an explosion of atmosphere, a riot of fiery energy pinned against the drama of a darkened sky. Bierstadt, known for his sweeping landscapes, takes a detour from the American frontier and directs his gaze towards Italy’s most famous volcanic peak. And oh, how it smolders.

Vesuvius is the star here, of course. It’s caught in mid-eruption, spitting molten lava into the night with that deep, molten red that almost makes you feel the heat. Bierstadt’s mastery of light and shadow is fully on display - the contrast between the bright, angry glow of the lava and the inky darkness of the surrounding night creates an intensity that’s both eerie and mesmerizing. You can almost hear the distant rumbling, can’t you? That volcanic rage, punctuated by the silence of the cold night.

But look closely - it’s not just about the volcano. In the foreground, Bierstadt gives us craggy rocks, twisted trees, and what appears to be a desolate landscape touched by the harshness of volcanic ash. This rugged terrain glows faintly from the reflected light of the lava, with Bierstadt using sharp, broken brushstrokes to capture the roughness of the landscape. It feels barren, cold, and indifferent, a stark contrast to the hot violence erupting in the background.

The composition is wild yet balanced. The eruption dominates the left side of the painting, with its chaotic burst of orange and red, while the right is quieter, with dark, cloud-covered sky and a faint sliver of moon. That little moon, almost an afterthought, lends a strange serenity to the chaos. It’s Bierstadt at his best - creating tension between the majestic and the terrifying.