A collection of modernist American art assembled in 1946 by the U.S. State Department was sent traveling abroad in the exhibition "Advancing American Art" to show the world America's latest artistic developments. Controversy forced an early closure of the world tour and the collection was dismantled as war surplus in 1948.

Now, nearly 70 years later, all but 10 paintings from the original 117 oils and watercolors have been located and will be on display Sept. 8 through Jan. 5 at the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art at Alabama's Auburn University in the debut of the exhibition, "Art Interrupted: Advancing American Art and the Politics of Cultural Diplomacy."

Art Interrupted, which will travel to three other venues, features works by Milton Avery, Stuart Davis, Adolph Gottlieb, Marsden Hartley, Reginald Marsh, Georgia O’Keeffe, Ben Shahn, Charles Sheeler, and many other well-known artists.

An exhibition catalog is available.