Founded in 1959 on the Colby College campus in Waterville, Maine, the Colby College Museum of Art grew from 1950s gifts into a five-wing museum with nearly 8,000 works and more than 38,000 square feet of exhibition space. Strongest in American and contemporary art, it also holds Chinese antiquities, European painting, and works on paper, serving both teaching and public culture. Major gifts shaped its identity, including extensive holdings of Alex Katz, John Marin, Whistler, and the Lunder-Colville Chinese Art Collection. Expanded by new wings and contemporary installations, it also supports research through archives, partnerships, and its close integration of collection, architecture, and academic mission.