Frank Cohen
Born 1943 Manchester UK – lives in Wilmslow and works in London
Frank Cohen’s modern myth taking him from rags to contemporary art riches is a more accurate representation of his character as art collector than any ongoing comparisons to Charles Saatchi. Cohen was always a collector, but his direction was not focused on art until he began courting his wife Cheryl Cohen. Having left school at 15 in Manchester, Cohen manufactured and sold wallpaper from the back of a truck. Every time he picked up Cheryl, her dad (a dealer of objects d’art and chairman of the Fine Art Trade Guild) would sell him a Lowry print for £15 until he eventually sought out a Lowry original. Wendy Bridgeman, publisher of Lowry limited editions, sold Cohen his first Lowry titled Our Family for £1,100. He founded Glyn Webb Home Improvement Stores in the North of England and sold it in 1999 for a reported £25 million, which he uses to fund his collection and gallery operations.
Beginning with a collection of Modern British art in the 1970’s, Cohen’s collecting habits didn’t shift to the contemporary until he met his current business partner Nicolai Frahm who advised him in becoming a YBA patron in the early 90’s. His collection also includes American and German art of the 80’s and 90’s, contemporary Japanese art primarily from the Superflat movement and most recently, contemporary Chinese and Indian art. Until its closure in 2012, Cohen made it his priority to showcase the young artists in his collection at his Wolverhampton space Initial Access, opened shortly after his stint as a Turner Prize jury member (2003). In 2013, he opened the Dairy Art Centre with Frahm in an old spacious dairy in Bloomsbury (currently closed for refurbishment). With the remit of single artist shows, Cohen aims to foster a space where art can be for everyone.
Born 1943 Manchester UK – lives in Wilmslow and works in London
Frank Cohen’s modern myth taking him from rags to contemporary art riches is a more accurate representation of his character as art collector than any ongoing comparisons to Charles Saatchi. Cohen was always a collector, but his direction was not focused on art until he began courting his wife Cheryl Cohen. Having left school at 15 in Manchester, Cohen manufactured and sold wallpaper from the back of a truck. Every time he picked up Cheryl, her dad (a dealer of objects d’art and chairman of the Fine Art Trade Guild) would sell him a Lowry print for £15 until he eventually sought out a Lowry original. Wendy Bridgeman, publisher of Lowry limited editions, sold Cohen his first Lowry titled Our Family for £1,100. He founded Glyn Webb Home Improvement Stores in the North of England and sold it in 1999 for a reported £25 million, which he uses to fund his collection and gallery operations.
Beginning with a collection of Modern British art in the 1970’s, Cohen’s collecting habits didn’t shift to the contemporary until he met his current business partner Nicolai Frahm who advised him in becoming a YBA patron in the early 90’s. His collection also includes American and German art of the 80’s and 90’s, contemporary Japanese art primarily from the Superflat movement and most recently, contemporary Chinese and Indian art. Until its closure in 2012, Cohen made it his priority to showcase the young artists in his collection at his Wolverhampton space Initial Access, opened shortly after his stint as a Turner Prize jury member (2003). In 2013, he opened the Dairy Art Centre with Frahm in an old spacious dairy in Bloomsbury (currently closed for refurbishment). With the remit of single artist shows, Cohen aims to foster a space where art can be for everyone.