Lunder Institute for American Art

The Lunder Institute for American Art supports innovative research and creative production that expands the boundaries of American art. A collaborative initiative of the Colby College Museum of Art located in central Maine, the Lunder Institute invites visiting artists, scholars, and museum professionals to engage across disciplines with Colby faculty and students, the College’s network of institutional partners, leading experts, and other creative collaborators. Through fellowships, workshops, symposia, and incubator grants, the Lunder Institute amplifies marginalized voices, challenges convention, and provides a platform for generative dialogue through art and scholarship.

The Lunder Institute was established in 2017 through the generosity of Peter and Paula Lunder and the Lunder Foundation, longtime benefactors of Colby, the Colby College Museum of Art, and the field of American art. Since the establishment of the Museum in 1959, American art has been a distinguished strength. Over the past decade, its founding collections have been expanded and enriched by two major gifts of art from the Lunder Collection in 2013 and 2017. The Lunder Institute was conceived as a research and creative arm of the Colby Museum, with significant ties to the College and its multidisciplinary curricula. It provides a platform for the Museum to develop scholarly and artistic collaborations and extend its engagement with local, national, and international audiences.

Research fellows

Research Fellows incorporate artwork at the Colby Museum into their current research, putting the collection into conversation with the broader field. Research Fellows convene for up to a week during the fall semester to study their selected artwork and participate in high-level discussions around that year’s area of focus. The cohort regathers in the spring to share research-in-progress and discuss future outcomes for their work, which may include public symposia, publications, and museum interventions. Each fellow receives a stipend, part-time help from a Colby undergraduate research assistant, and travel and accommodations for the two required meetings.

Residential fellows

Established in 2021, the Lunder Institute residential fellowships provide artists with spacious studios as well as opportunities for collaboration with Colby College faculty, students, staff, and the Waterville community. This new studio program, which is based at the Greene Block + Studios at 18 Main Street in downtown Waterville, encompasses artists at all stages of their careers and working in a range of artistic disciplines and mediums. Resident fellows are provided with housing and a stipend; have access to Colby College campus facilities; and are in dialogue with local organizations and community members.

Senior/Creative Fellows

The Lunder Institute supports scholarly and creative research by senior scholars, curators, and artists whose work aligns with Lunder Institute and Colby Museum priorities and initiatives. Chosen by invitation, Senior Fellows’ non-residential appointments last from nine to eighteen months. During their appointment Senior Fellows make at least two short-term campus visits and contribute to the Colby community through academic engagement and one or more public programs related to their research.

Summer Think Tank Fellows

The goal of the Lunder Institute Summer Think Tank is to provide a safe and fertile space for participants and the freedom to engage with other invitees, as well as with Colby Museum staff, students, and faculty. These conversations will also introduce ideas and methods of addressing the hows and whys of the state of American art, leading to innovations in the field. As a unique incubator of research and practice, the Lunder Institute seeks to offer a platform for field-wide discussion, supporting, fostering, documenting, and sharing the knowledge and new questions that emerge.

Visiting Artists

The Lunder Institute hosts one or more visiting artists each semester to conduct research, initiate or complete new work, and collaborate in diverse ways with faculty, museum staff, students, and Maine-based makers and craftspeople. The program aims to foster artists’ practices at all stages of development and spark new creative and professional networks. The framework of each visiting artist’s engagement is established in partnership with Lunder Institute staff to ensure the best possible outcomes.

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Invitations are extended to Lunder Fellows

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https://lunderinstitute.colby.edu/what-we-do/