A fascinating biography of the philanthropist Albert Barnes, whose pioneering collection of modern art was meant to transform America’s soul From prominent critic and biographer Blake Gopnik comes a compelling new art collector biography of America’s first great collector of modern art, Albert Coombs Barnes. Raised in a Philadelphia slum shortly after the Civil War, Barnes rose to earn a medical degree and then made a fortune from a pioneering antiseptic treatment for newborns. Never losing sight of the working-class neighbors of his youth, Barnes became a ruthless advocate for their rights and needs. His vast art collection—181 Renoirs, 69 Cézannes, 59 Matisses, 46 Picassos—was dedicated to enriching their cultural lives. A miner was more likely to get access than a mine owner. Gopnik’s meticulous research reveals Barnes as a fierce advocate for the egalitarian ideals of the Progressive Era. But while his friends in the movement worked to reshape American society, Barnes wanted to transform the nation’s aesthetic life, taking art out of the hands of the elite and making it available to the average American. The Maverick’s Museum offers a vivid picture of one of America’s great eccentrics. The sheer ferocity of Barnes’s democratic ambitions left him with more enemies than allies among people of all classes, but for a circle of intimates, he was a model of intelligence, generosity, and loyalty. In this compelling portrait, Gopnik reveals a life shaped by contradictions, one that left a lasting impact through the renowned Barnes Foundation. This definitive biography goes beyond the collection to reveal the complex, controversial man who changed American art. A Gilded Age Rags-to-Riches Story: Follow Albert C. Barnes from a Philadelphia slum to a medical degree and a fortune built on a revolutionary antiseptic, driven by a ferocious ambition to upend the established order. The World’s Greatest Modern Art Collection: Discover the story behind the staggering collection—including 181 Renoirs, 69 Cézannes, and 59 Matisses—and the radical vision to make it a tool for educating working-class Americans, not the elite. A Fierce and Contradictory Figure: Uncover the portrait of one of America’s great eccentrics—a ruthless businessman, a fierce advocate for social justice, and a loyal friend whose terrible temper became legendary. “Gopnik ably illustrates the story of Barnes’s rise and his collecting, spiriting the reader along as Barnes flits from passion to passion, feud to feud.” - Wall Street Journal "A vivid, engrossing biography." - New York Times "A clear-eyed assessment of a champion of modern art...a comprehensive portrait." - Kirkus Reviews “A vibrant and comprehensive portrait of an influential figure in American art history.” - Publishers Weekly “Charming and fascinating …. The result of Gopnik’s prodigious research is a lavishly illustrated book rich with storylines….the Barnes is, at long last, a public institution. Hundreds of thousands of people now visit annually (this year, I hope, including me). Read the book, and you’ll want to go, too.” - Washington Independent Review of Books "The Maverick’s Museum  has many such illuminating insights and is enriched by Gopnik’s skills as an ace archival researcher. Chances are, after reading this lively biography of Albert Barnes, you’ll want to follow it by visiting the Barnes Foundation — and vice versa." - Hyperallergic   Blake Gopnik , one of North America’s leading art critics, is the author of the comprehensive biography  Warhol . He has served as the art and design critic at  Newsweek , and as the chief art critic at the  Washington Post  and Canada’s the  Globe and Mail . In 2017, he was a Cullman Center fellow in residence at the New York Public Library, and in 2015 he held a fellowship at the Leon Levy Center for Biography at the City University of New York. He has a PhD in art history from Oxford University and is a regular contributor to the  New York Times .