WATERVILLE — As part of the plan for Colby College students, faculty and staff to return to campus this fall, Colby College Museum of Art’s galleries will be accessible only its students, faculty and staff who are participating in the college’s testing program. While this requires extending the college’s current closure to other visitors, it is important to do everything possible to ensure the health and safety of the Colby and Waterville community during these unprecedented times, according to a news release from museum.
The museum and the Lunder Institute for American Art will adapt as the college reopens and is committed to remaining connected to the many audiences it serves in the months ahead. While staff realizes nothing compares to in-person visits, they are continually developing digital engagement resources and remote hands-on activities to enrich and inspire. They also will reach out periodically to solicit feedback on additional ways to provide support.
This fall, the museum will launch the Lunder Institute Talks, a series of hour-long, live Zoom conversations featuring scholars and artists who are shaping the field of American art. Keep an eye out for further details about these programs. In addition, its education and engagement team is developing other new programs while continuing its schedule of recurring virtual events at colby.edu/museum, such as Art + Conversation and the Let Art Inspire program, which includes Artful Movements, its yoga series with movements inspired by works in the collection. The museum’s virtual offerings also will incorporate the ongoing anti-racism work being undertaken at the museum, on its own and in tandem with Colby’s commitment to addressing inequality.
Those who have school-aged children can stop by the George J. Mitchell School on select Wednesdays (July 22, Aug. 5 and 19) or the Downtown Waterville Farmers’ Market on select Thursdays (July 23, Aug. 6, 20, and Sept. 3) to pick up one of the museum’s free Art Kits for All. The museum distributes these kits in collaboration with its partners at Waterville Creates!, Kennebec Montessori School, Waterville Public Schools, and the Family Violence Project. And watch for an announcement of a second round of Lively Spaces: Artists in Residence, a free arts day camp kids can join from the safety of home, in August.
To stay connected, use Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, as well as on the museum’s website colby.edu/museum, especially its Museum @ Home portal, to find links to past and upcoming virtual programs, exhibitions, hands-on art projects to try at home, and more.
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