GRAND RAPIDS, MI.- The Grand Rapids Art Museum presents three exhibitions this fall that focus on cities as an inspiration to artists more than a century ago. The exhibitions, Tissot’s London 1871- 1882: The Art and Culture of City Life, JM Whistler and the Romance of Great Cities and American Impressionism: Paintings from The Phillips Collection open October 2, 2009. As the Grand Rapids Art Museum enters a new century with a beautiful new building in a revitalized downtown, these exhibitions remind us that the conversation and innovative ideas generated in a cultured city are as relevant today as they were 100 years past.

Tissot’s London 1871 – 1882: The Art and Culture of City Life features James Tissot’s paintings and prints created during his ten years in London. The city’s museums, parks, streets, taverns and residences served as both stage and subject for his scenes of daily life. The exhibition includes major paintings on loan from museums in the United States and Canada and etchings from private collections.

James McNeill Whistler and the Romance of Great Cities focuses on etchings and lithographs dating from 1859 to 1896 that captured the romance of quiet streets, teeming avenues and grand vistas in the cities of London, Venice and Paris. The exhibition is drawn from the collection of Joan Winchell.

American Impressionism: Paintings from The Phillips Collection includes 54 paintings featuring the pioneers of American Impressionism including Childe Hassam, Theodore Robinson and John Twachtman. Duncan Phillips was among the early collectors of American Impressionist paintings, acquiring most of the works in this exhibition directly from the artists he had come to know. These artists created a new interpretation of America’s landscape and cities.