Maritime Maverick: The Collection of William I.Koch

As a sailor and a collector, William I. Koch has always been a maverick. An outsider and Johnny-come-lately to the world of yacht racing, he won the 1992 America's Cup through scientific innovation, precision team-building, and a damn-the-odds attitude: the crew of his America quite simply out-built, outwitted, and out-sailed Italy's II Moro. A highly personal collector, he has brought together a collection of maritime masterworks that speak profoundly of his love of the sea and all its traditions: it is a unique and historically significant treasure trove of art, artifacts, and specially commissioned ship models. Bill Koch the sailor, the connoisseur, and the enthusiast are manifest on every page of Maritime Maverick, a beautifully produced book that is part profile, part catalogue raisonn‚, but, above all else, a celebration of America's life at sea.

Mr. Koch's collection includes maritime subjects by artists such as Homer, Remington, Monet, Dufy, and Botero. It also includes a magnificent collection of canvases depicting important naval battles of the War of 1812, especially incidents involving USS Chesapeake (whose captain was Koch's ancestor James Lawrence, author of the immortal cry "Don't Give Up the Ship!"). Mr. Koch's collection of models of America's Cup vessels — from the inception of the race in 1851 to the present day — is complete, containing not only every yacht that won the Cup but also every one that competed for it. In addition, he has acquired an unprecedented collection of shipboard furniture, navigational instruments, and other memorabilia — materials that are seldom seen or documented and that provide an unrivaled window on centuries of lifebelow decks.

The William I. Koch collection, formed by the experience of an expert yachtsman and the eye of a discriminating collector, is the mirror of a man who approaches maritime art and history with reverence and passion. It is personal, eclectic, and provocative. This sumptuous book will provide weeks of pleasure to any serious art lover, antiques collector, or blue-blooded sailor.

"A spectacular book, one no sailing or antiques enthusiast will want to resist." -Antiques and Fine Art

"Faultlessly photographed and beautifully printed. . . Breathtaking!" -Maine Antique Digest