• In Waterville, the Colby College Museum of Art hosts separate but related exhibitions that bring together photography from various periods in American history.

“American Modern,” opening Saturday, showcases photographs from the 1930s by American masters Berenice Abbott, Margaret Bourke-White and Walker Evans with loans from major collections including the Metropolitan Museum, the National Gallery of Art and the Art Institute of Chicago.

In the 1930s, photographers pushed documentary photography to the forefront of public culture in the United States. The exhibition focuses on the work of this trio.

Also on view is “Andrew Moore: Detroit Disassembled.” Made in 2008 and 2009, these color photographs document the impact of Detroit’s industrial decline and the encroachment of nature on the city most associated with American mobility.

Finally, the museum is showing “Celebrating a Gift: The Norma B. Marin Photography Collection.” Marin began collecting photographs in 1970, gradually acquiring works by the likes of Abbott, Alfred Stieglitz, Ansel Adams and Imogen Cunningham. This spring, Marin promised her collection to the museum.

Also on view are prints by James McNeill Whistler, presented in honor of the late curator and print scholar David P. Becker.

The summer exhibitions at Colby will close Oct. 2, prior to the groundbreaking for the museum’s new addition, scheduled to open in summer 2013. Following a brief closure, some galleries will remain open throughout the construction.

 

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