Ode to Fré CohenDo you know who she was?
Fré Cohen, photographer unknown. Collection Peter van Dam (author/biographer of Fré Cohen)
Listen to the ode
Period
1903– 1943
About
Ode by Louise Bos and Liesbeth van Dijk to Fré Cohen.
The more work of hers I saw and the more I read about her life, I became more and more enthusiastic. She should not be forgotten. And a new generation should be introduced to her. The first starting point was: woman from Amsterdam East who meant something. I admire her enormous drive and her strong personality. I have the idea that she chose her own path every time at crossroads in her life and I find that incredibly beautiful. I think that was sometimes against the grain, too, in her time. I admire that. She radiated strength, tremendous creativity, an artistic drive. She was also musical, she played the piano and loved to sing. She was also politically inspired, optimistic, realistic, brave. Your life was actually too short.
Fré Cohen
Frederika Sophia (Fré) Cohen (Amsterdam, August 11, 1903 - Hengelo, June 12, 1943) was a Dutch graphic artist and draughtswoman of Jewish descent.
Ex libris Marie Hamel, by Fré Cohen. Jewish Historical Museum Collection
Fré Cohen's typical angular yet graceful typography in the Giro Booklet, 19, Stedelijk Museum Collection
Poster of NVV and SDAP 1930, IISH Collection.
Flyer for the podcast, design Foekje Detmar
This text was translated using AI and may contain errors. If you have suggestions or comments, please contact us at info.ode@amsterdammuseum.nl.
The podcast was created as part of “Ode to Women,” organized by the Amsterdam Museum in celebration of the city's 750th anniversary.
Louise Bos and Liesbeth van Dijk, story collectors of Geheugen van Oost, pay tribute to Fré Cohen in the form of this podcast. They delve into her life and take the listener along in their search for this extraordinary woman from Amsterdam Oost.
Frederika Sophia (Fré) Cohen (1903-1943) was born in Blasiusstraat in Oost and was the eldest of three children. She was of Jewish descent; both her parents worked as diamond workers. Fré Cohen became one of the most important designers of the Amsterdam School. Among other things, she designed graphic printed matter for the City of Amsterdam, including the famous “giro booklet. But she also designed for the SDAP, trade unions, cooperatives and made ex libris, book covers and advertisements.
From a young age, Fré Cohen was involved in the socialist movement, first with the AJC and later with the SDAP. She was a self-confident, emancipated woman who was financially independent, unusual for that time.
In 1942 she had to go into hiding in Borne and in 1943, at the age of 39, after being betrayed, she chose her own death. Fré Cohen is buried in Hengelo.