MuSE: A Community Museum
Hosted by the Center for Environment and Society, this public space in downtown Chestertown exhibits collaborations between students, faculty, staff, and the wider community.
MuSE hosts rotating exhibits that highlight Washington College teaching, experiential learning, and research. Each exhibit will be informational, interactive, and highly visual, creating a dynamic community space for learning and sharing on the Eastern Shore.
MuSE is currently open on First Fridays from 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm, Saturdays from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm, and by request for groups.
Current Exhibits
The Wonders and Wanderings of Northern England
Open: March 7 - July 26 .
The Wonders and Wanderings of Northern England exhibition explores the historical, literary, and environmental stories of Northern England, highlighting its connections with the state of Maryland. The exhibition was created by students that participated in the Kiplin Hall Exchange Program where students explore the intersection of landscapes, writers, and history of northern England.
Chesapeake Changemakers
Open: March 7 - July 26 .
Created by students in the Fall 2024 Chesapeake Semester, this exhibit highlights the stories of diverse regional leaders shaping the Chesapeake Bay’s future. The Chesapeake Semester is a 16-credit immersive program that blends intensive study, fieldwork, and outdoor adventure, fostering a deep connection to place and a nuanced understanding of environmental challenges. The exhibit features biographical profiles of 15 regional changemakers from the arts, environmental conservation, agriculture, and historical preservation that students met on their journey. These profiles offer a rich firsthand perspective on leadership in conservation and sustainability. Chesapeake Changemakers also features an exhibit focused on helping young people see themselves as agents of chance. This fun and interactive exhibit, Youth Can Make a Difference, was curated by Museum Field and Community Education intern Zoe Brookbank, ‘26.
Past Exhibits
Digital Scholarship in Museum Partnerships Program
In the fall of 2023, the Digital Scholarship in Museum Partnerships Project was the first collaborative effort featured in MuSE, which hosted a collection of
exhibits created by students from five museums in Kent County – Sumner Hall, The Waterman’s
Museum, The Worton Point Schoolhouse, Betterton Heritage Museum, and Kent Museum.
With the goal of preserving and providing greater access to the local histories of
our community, the exhibition highlighted the mission of the space by providing digitized
looks into each museum, viewable through virtual reality with 360-degree virtual tours,
digitized collections, oral history interviews, and interactive panels.
Teaching & Transformation: Semester in the Chesapeake Classroom
Exhibit Dates: March 1 – July 27
This exhibit showcased the nature and culture of the Chesapeake Bay region through the final projects created by Washington College's Chesapeake Semester students. Their hand-drawn maps and visual journals provided visitors a sense of the unique Chesapeake ecosystem, analyze solutions to environmental problems, and explored the nexus between science, policy, and people's everyday lives in the region.
Nest Alchemy
Nest Alchemy
Exhibit Dates: August 2 - December 14.
Nest Alchemy is a thought-provoking series created by Deirdre Murphy, a contemporary visual artist, who explores the intersection of art and science through the lens of natural patterns, data visualization and climate change. Her interest in avian migratory patterns and the effects of climate change have led her research to a variety of residencies, most recently with Washington College’s Center for the Environment & Society’s Foreman Branch Bird Observatory.
Nest Alchemy investigates birds' nest throughout the four seasons and revels in the architectural wonders of the avian species. Murphy challenges the traditional assumption that nest building is a purely instinctual process by highlighting the learning and memory abilities of birds.