Joseph M. Cohen

Background

Joseph M. Cohen has been building his collection of Modern and Contemporary Art over the last 60 years. The Joseph M. Cohen Family Collection includes over 900 works by more than 200 artists, and is one of the world’s leading collections of Modern and Contemporary photography. The collection features in-depth holdings of influential photographers such as Irving Penn, Robert Frank, Marina Abramovic, Robert Mapplethorpe, Sally Mann, William Christenberry, Peter Hujar, Rineke Dijkstra, Vera Lutter, Desiree Dolron, and more, plus an ever-growing representation of emerging artists. Recently the collection has been focusing on Contemporary painting and sculpture. Mr. Cohen presided over the Wall Street investment firm Cowen & Company, an investment banking and capital market firm that provided distinctive service to a multitude of institutions and corporate and private investors. Under his thirty-year leadership from the seventies until its sale to Société Générale, the company was transformed from a small boutique firm into a leading international financial services and investment banking company. In 2000, Mr. Cohen resigned from Société Générale and became the Chairman of JM Cohen & Co, LLC, a private family investment firm.


Philanthropy

Mr. Cohen has always found time for philanthropic activities. He is the President Emeritus of Citymeals-on-Wheels and currently serves as Vice Chair; a Director of the Glaucoma Foundation; an Emeritus Trustee of The Jackson Laboratory, a leading genetics research and non-profit mouse production facility; on the Board of New York Eye and Ear infirmary; a former Director of Cantel Medical, a company listed on the New York Stock Exchange; a member of the Chairman’s Council, Stieglitz Society and Visiting Committee of the Metropolitan Museum of Art; Collector’s Committee and Photography Initiative of the National Gallery; member of the Photography Committee at the Museum of Modern Art, Whitney, and Guggenheim. In addition, Mr. Cohen joined the Chamber Music Society Board in 2011.


Loans and Permissions

The Joseph M. Cohen Family Collection cooperates with specialists when its holdings can make a meaningful contribution to publications and exhibitions. To discuss loan, exhibitions, collaborations, or special projects, please contact jheine@jmcohen.com.