Three lithographies, a woodcut and a number of proof prints of designs for vignettes for the magazine De Toorts (The Torch), all by Fré Cohen, were donated to the IISH. They are splendid original works by a woman who more than any other artist shaped the image of the Dutch social democracy before World War II.
Fré Cohen (Amsterdam 1903 - Hengelo 1943) grew up in a jewish social democratic environment. She had office jobs at publishing houses of the workers' movement and studied typography in the evenings. Actively involved in the Arbeiders Jeugd Centrale (AJC, Workers' Youth Central), she designed many of its brochures and periodicals. In 1927 she was among the founders of the Socialistische Kunstenaars Kring (SKK, Socialist Artists' Circle), together with Jan W. Jacobs. The works donated are from this period. In these same years, Cohen designed many publications for the municipality of Amsterdam. In 1943 she was betrayed and arrested by the Germans, and subsequently committed suicide.
These works were donated by R. Bleekrode, son of the artist Meijer Bleekrode, who was a close friend of Fré Cohen. Here are some examples:
Text: Huub Sanders