Photos: Barnes On The Parkway

The Barnes Foundation and its world-renowned art collection, , will be unveiled to the public on Saturday, May 19 at its new home in Philadelphia. 

The Barnes Foundation collection—which includes works by Van Gogh, Picasso, Renoir, Cezanne, Matisse, and Degas—is estimated to be worth $25 billion.

Collector Dr. Albert Barnes created the Barnes Foundation in 1922 as an educational institution, with the philosophy of making art accessible to ordinary people. He requested in the foundation's Indenture of Trust that his collection never be moved or even rearranged.

In 2002, the Barnes Foundation announced its intention to move the collection to Philadelphia, citing financial concerns. The Montgomery County Orphans' Court approved the petition to move the gallery in 2004, and though legal battles continued, the groundbreaking for the new building was held in 2009.

On May 19, the new Barnes Foundation campus opens to the public, at 2025 Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia.

“In making this great collection accessible to people from different backgrounds, from every walk of life, and in doing so while keeping the collection intact, we honor the legacy of Dr. Albert C. Barnes and the foundation he created,” Barnes Foundation Executive Director Derek Gillman said at Wednesday’s press preview.

View the photo gallery above for photos from the May 16 press preview and a sneak peak at the foundation's new building.