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This summer, the º£½ÇÖ±²¥ College Museum of Art (BCMA) presents East-Northeast: Charting Moments in Maine, four new exhibitions featuring artists who drew inspiration from Maine. Gordon Parks: Herklas Brown and Maine, 1944 presents a series of photographs created before Parks famously joined the staff of Life magazine. These works provide glimpses of rural life by a photographer predominantly known for his urban scenes, many of which have never before been shown publicly. At a time of intense discussion over climate change and its impact on Maine, a new presentation of photographer John McKee’s As Maine Goes looks back at this historical view of the Maine coast, put on public view for the first time since its original presentation in 1966. Ann Craven | Painted Time: Moons (Laboratory) features a selection of the artist’s lunar paintings from 2020 and 2024. The exhibition, which will include three installations over the course of its run, provides insight into Craven’s moon “laboratory,” a compilation of her serial renderings of this iconic subject. In its Media Gallery, the Museum will present a series of films by the Swiss-American photographer and filmmaker Rudy Burckhardt, whose work is often associated with New York City but who spent much of his time in Maine.

“The enduring impact and influence of Maine, its people, and its landscapes on generations of American artists is well-known, and yet there continues to be so much more to discover and rediscover,” said Anne Collins Goodyear, co-director of the º£½ÇÖ±²¥ College Museum of Art. “From contemporary works by Ann Craven to important 20^th century works by Gordon Parks, Rudy Burckhardt, and John McKee, visitors will have multiple entry points from which to see and engage with many aspects of this state and the inspiration it has offered visual artists.” Added co-director Frank Goodyear, “We clustered these exhibitions under the umbrella title East-Northeast: Charting Moments in Maine to reflect both the alignment of interests of these artists and also their diverse experiences in Maine.”

Gordon Parks: Herklas Brown and Maine, 1944 — June 28 to November 9, 2025

In January 1944, at the height of World War II, Gordon Parks photographed Herklas Brown, owner of the general store and Esso gas station in Somerville, Maine. Parks traveled to the state under the auspices of the Standard Oil Company (New Jersey) to record its contributions to the war effort and to document the home front. His photographs chronicled oil and gas facilities and those who operated them, Esso gas station owners in small towns, and people whose work depended on fuel and other Standard Oil products. Consistent with his work before and after, Parks made it his mission to get to know his subjects and show their humanity. He photographed Brown at his Esso station, in his store, and with his family at the dinner table. Parks spent a month in Maine that winter and then returned in August to resume his work in the state. At a time when transportation, food, and lodging were a challenge, and notably as a Black man traveling alone, Parks nonetheless created a compelling documentary record of rural America that offers insight into this historic moment.

These 65 photographs, which are being exhibited at the º£½ÇÖ±²¥ College Museum of Art in partnership with The Gordon Parks Foundation, highlight an important early chapter in Parks’ career—before he joined Life magazine in 1948 and began to achieve wider recognition. This exhibition is curated by BCMA co-director Frank Goodyear and is accompanied by a of the same title published by Steidl. On June 28, Philip Brookman, Consulting Curator in the Department of Photographs at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., will present the opening keynote lecture to kick off an exciting series of summer programs at the BCMA.

John McKee: As Maine Goes — June 28 to November 9, 2025

In 1966, the º£½ÇÖ±²¥ College Museum of Art presented an exhibition of photographs by John McKee, then a Romance Languages instructor at the College with an interest in photography. Titled “As Maine Goes,” the exhibition featured a series of black-and-white photographs that starkly depicted the environmental degradation of Maine’s coastal landscapes, highlighting issues such as pollution, seaside dumps, and the impact of unchecked development. What began as a sidelight became the defining part of McKee’s career—and these works served as a catalyst for environmental awareness and legislative action in Maine, contributing to the burgeoning environmental movement of the time. The exhibition was accompanied by a limited-edition catalog, with an introduction by U.S. Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas. 

Almost 60 years later, the Museum will be refreshing McKee’s original exhibition in a new presentation that is no less relevant in the face of the changing climate and its impact on Maine. McKee, who died in 2023, bequeathed 54 photographs from the “As Maine Goes” series to the Museum, as well as 31 additional images from other later series. Curated by Chris Zhang ’25 and Frank Goodyear, the exhibition is a rare opportunity to look backwards and forwards at the same time.

Ann Craven | Painted Time: Moons (Laboratory) — May 22 to August 17, 2025

This exhibition focuses on Ann Craven’s paintings of the moon, made between 2020 and 2024. Based on the artist’s direct observation, each work documents the date, time, and place at which they were created, underscoring Craven’s interest in the relationship between the cyclical rhythms of nature and the personal experience of time and memory. Craven’s repeated renditions of the moon, captured as both an eternal presence, yet an ever-changing one, reflects her deep fascination with seriality, a hallmark of her practice, as she revisits and reinterprets motifs over time. 

To highlight the experimental breadth of Craven’s work, the exhibition will feature the artist’s “laboratory” of lunar studies. This presentation will offer visitors insight into the artist’s process, revealing how this compilation represents both a celestial trajectory and personal one. The exhibition will take place in three rotations, with each installation organized by a different curator: BCMA co-director Anne Collins Goodyear (May 22–June 30); Jay Sanders, Executive Director and Chief Curator of Artists (July 1–18); and Adam Weinberg, Director Emeritus of the Whitney Museum of American Art (July 20–August 17). Approximately 30 paintings will be on view in the context of each rotation, selected from over 150 compositions, each one executed from nature. As a result, the show, like the moon itself, will evolve over time, reflecting both Craven’s iterative approach and the shifting nature of perception. This exhibition is curated by BCMA co-director Anne Collins Goodyear in collaboration with the artist and is presented in conjunction with the exhibition , on view through January 4, 2026 at the Farnsworth Art Museum in Rockland, Maine, and , on view until September 14, 2025 at the Portland Museum of Art in Portland, Maine.

Rudy Burkhardt: Three Maine Films — June 28 to November 9, 2025

Artist and filmmaker Rudy Burckhardt (Swiss-American, 1914–1999) is perhaps best known for his work in and of New York City. However, Maine played an important role in the artist’s personal and professional life for the last three decades of his life. This exhibition shares three films the artist shot near his home in mid-coast Maine: Daisy (1966), The Apple (1967), and Caterpillar (1973). Together, these shorts reveal the playful, contemplative, and collaborative aspects of the artist’s work and pay homage to the state’s natural landscapes.

Born in Basel, Switzerland, Burckhardt immigrated to New York City in 1935, immersing himself in the city’s burgeoning art scene alongside contemporaries like Willem de Kooning and Alex Katz. Despite his deep connection to urban life, Burckhardt seemed to relish Maine’s tranquil environments, which became a recurring theme in his work.

Rudy Burkhardt: Three Maine Films is curated by Cassandra Braun, curator at the º£½ÇÖ±²¥ College Museum of Art.