• African-American Studies
• American Studies
• Anthropology
• Art
• Biology
• Chemistry
• Cinema Studies
• Classics
• Computer Science
• Creative Writing

• East Asian Studies
• Economics
• Education
• English
• Environmental Studies
• French and Italian
• Geology
• German
• Global Studies
• Government

• History
• Independent Study
• Integrated Studies
• Jewish Studies
• Latin American Studies
• Mathematics
• Music

• Philosophy
• Physics and Astronomy
• Psychology
• Religious Studies
• Russian
• Science, Technology, and Society
• Sociology
• Spanish
• Statistics
• Theater and Dance
• Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

Professor Adrianna Paliyenko, Chair

• Art
• Classics
• Creative Writing
• East Asian Studies
• English
• French and Italian
• German
• Music
• Philosophy
• Religious Studies
• Spanish
• Theater and Dance

HUMANITIES DIVISION WEBSITE

HUMANITIES GRANTS

Professor Andreas Waldkirch, Chair

• Anthropology
• Economics
• Government
• History
• Psychology
• Sociology

Professor Charles Connover, Chair

• Biology
• Chemistry
• Computer Science
• Geology
• Mathematics and Statistics
• Physics and Astronomy

Professor Lisa Arellano, Chair

• African-American Studies
• American Studies
• Cinema Studies
• Education
• Environmental Studies
• Global Studies
• Jewish Studies
• Latin American Studies
• Science, Technology, and Society
• Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

1950s – 1980s

In the early 1950s Adeline and Caroline Wing gave paintings by William Merritt Chase, Winslow Homer, and Andrew Wyeth to Colby College. In 1956 Mr. and Mrs. Ellerton M. Jetté donated their American Heritage Collection, comprising 76 works by American folk artists. The next year the College received the Helen Warren and Willard Howe Cummings collection of American paintings and watercolors. Two years later, in 1959, the Museum opened its first official galleries in the Bixler Art and Music Center. The Jetté Galleries, a major addition designed by E. Verner Johnson and Associates, opened in 1973. In that same year Norma B. Marin and John Marin Jr. gave 25 works of art by John Marin. The John Marin Collection at the Colby College Museum of Art remains the largest collection of Marin’s work in an academic museum in the country. In 1984 the Museum celebrated its 25th anniversary with the exhibition, Portrait of New England Places, which covered a span of nearly 200 years in American art.

1990s

In 1991 the Museum expanded again, increasing the collection storage facilities and adding the Davis Gallery designed by Shepley, Bulfinch, Richardson and Abbott of Boston. In 1992 the Museum received a gift of 414 works by Alex Katz from the artist. In 1996 the Museum inaugurated the Paul J. Schupf Wing for the Works of Alex Katz to house this collection. The collection now holds more than 800 works by the artist.

In 1999, with a lead gift from Peter and Paula Lunder, a new wing opened for the exhibition of Colby’s growing collection of American art. The Lunder Wing, designed by architect Frederick Fisher, comprises 13 galleries and 9,000 square feet of exhibition space for the Colby Museum’s growing collection.

2000 – PRESENT

In 2000 Richard Serra’s monumental 4-5-6 was installed in the Paul J. Schupf Sculpture Court. This three-part Corten steel sculpture dramatically anchors the courtyard and main entrance to the Museum. In 2002, on the Museum’s east lawn, Seven Walls, a concrete structure by conceptual artist Sol LeWitt, was installed with support for its construction provided by the Jere Abbott Acquisitions Fund.

In 2004, through a partial gift of the artist and Universal Limited Art Editions (ULAE), the Museum became the sole repository of the complete print oeuvre of Terry Winters. In 2006 Paul J. Schupf promised the Museum his collection of more than 150 works on paper and one sculpture by renowned American artist Richard Serra. This gift makes the Colby Museum one of the largest repositories of Serra’s works on paper.

In 2007 Peter and Paula Lunder, longtime benefactors of the Museum, promised their outstanding collection to Colby College. The gift included more than 500 works of art, the majority of them by American artists, as well as 40 exceptional examples of ritual and mortuary art that make up the Lunder-Colville Chinese Art Collection. In 2009 the College approved the designs for the Alfond-Lunder Family Pavilion, named in recognition of a gift from the Harold Alfond Foundation and the partnership and friendship between Harold Alfond and Peter Lunder. Also in 2009 the Museum marked its 50th anniversary by presenting the exhibition Art at Colby: Celebrating the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Colby College Museum of Art.

In July 2013 the Colby Museum inaugurated the Alfond-Lunder Family Pavilion. Refined and minimalist in design, the glass pavilion completes a circuit with the four existing wings of the Museum. The pavilion provides a spacious lobby that includes a sculpture gallery and terrace, as well as new exhibition galleries, classrooms, expanded collection storage, and staff offices. A three-story wall drawing by conceptual artist Sol LeWitt occupies the glass-enclosed stairwell. The pavilion’s upper floor is dedicated to the College’s Art Department, providing new studios for photography and fine art foundation classes.

LUNDER INSTITUTE FOR AMERICAN ART

The Lunder Institute for American Art at Colby College was established in 2017 following a gift of over 1,150 works of art from Peter Lunder ’56, D.F.A. ’98, and Paula Lunder D.F.A. ’98. The transformational. $100-million gift of art, representing over 150 artists, includes paintings, sculptures, photography, and works on paper, including a 1501 Albrecht Dürer.

The Institute creates a unique space for scholarship, creative works, dialogue, and mentorship among visiting scholars and artists, Colby faculty and students, and the central Maine community; facilitates institutional exchange in the United States and internationally; and trains future leaders in the field of American art through the Colby Museum and partner institutions around the world.

To advance critical and creative research in American art and related fields, the Institute hosts a residential program for scholars and artists on campus and in downtown Waterville. Residencies are offered to graduate students, scholars, curators, and emerging and internationally renowned artists who may develop new site-specific works on campus and in the community.

LUNDER INSTITUTE FOR AMERICAN ART

MILLER LIBRARY

Iconic Miller Library, at the heart of campus, houses materials in the social sciences and humanities. During your visit, be sure to see the beautifully restored Brewster Reading Room, with its wonderful view of hills to the east.

OLIN SCIENCE LIBRARY

The Olin Science Library, located in Olin Science Center, supports the sciences and environmental studies.

BIXLER ART AND MUSIC LIBRARY

Adjacent to the Colby College Museum of Art, Bixler Art & Music Library includes collections and services tailored to the needs of the art, music, museum, and theater programs.

SPECIAL COLLECTIONS

Miller Library is also home to Special Collections, which is partnered with the Libraries’ digital production workshop to increase availability of their unique holdings.  Explore the rich List of Manuscript Collections and enjoy multi modal electronic access to portions of the Wesley McNair Collection. Learn more about their Services to Alumni.