PHILADELPHIA — “An American Odyssey: The Warner Collection of American Art” opens at the University of Pennsylvania’s Arthur Ross Gallery on Aug. 13. 

An exploration of history through art, the traveling exhibition from Tuscaloosa, Ala., consists of paintings that chronicle the American experience from 1799 to 1971 in portraits, genre, still life and landscapes.

From the private collection of Jonathan “Jack” Warner and his wife, Susan Austin Warner, and the collection of the Warner Foundation, the exhibit includes works by Albert Bierstadt, Mary Cassatt, Frederic E. Church, Thomas Cole, Childe Hassam, Winslow Homer, James Peale and Andrew Wyeth.

Warner began his collection in the 1950s when he purchased a series of prints by John James Audubon.  During the next 40 years, he assembled one of the world’s most notable collections of American art.  In 2003, he founded the Westervelt-Warner Museum to share his collection of paintings sculptures, furniture and decorative arts with the public.

Special events include an American art symposium on Friday, Oct. 21.

 “An American Odyssey” runs through Nov. 6.

The Arthur Ross Gallery is at 220 S. 34th St.  Hours are Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., and weekends, noon-5 p.m.

The Gallery is free and open to the public. 

Additional information is available at 215-898-2083 or www.upenn.edu/ARG.