This digital exhibition showcases representations of weather in Amherst College collections. From prehistoric scientific specimens to contemporary artists’ books, the objects presented here attest to weather as an omnipresent and ever-changing force, simultaneously beyond human control and, in an era of climate crisis, the product of human action. Through these objects, we ask: How and to what end has weather been given visual form across diverse contexts? How does art shape our understanding of both weather and climate? And how has Amherst College—including the Beneski Museum of Natural History, Frost Library, the Emily Dickinson Museum, and the Mead Art Museum—participated in preserving and telling these stories?
We invite you to explore the exhibition through the themes below, or you can use the menu above to navigate by region, century, medium, collection, and weather phenomenon. All objects are accompanied by short essays authored by students in Professor Katherine Fein’s spring 2025 course The Art of Weather.
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