Ernst Cohen photograph collection
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Abstract
The Ernst Cohen Photograph Collection consists of approximately 400 black and white photographs of Manhattan from 1964 thru 2002, with the bulk of the images from the 1990's. In addition to street scenes that document New Yorkers going about everyday life, Cohen photographed a number of special events, including parades (Gay Pride, St. Patrick's Day, Turkish Day, and others), a Russ Perot rally, and various street fairs. Cohen's style reflects the documentary small-format camera street photography tradition popular during the 1960's and 70's in the United States with photographers such as Gary Winogrand and Robert Frank.
Biographical Note
Ernst Cohen (1923-2009) was an amateur photographer who lived in Brooklyn, New York for most of his life. He was born in Berlin, Germany, to David (Yitzhak) Cohen and Sarah Littmann Cohen. His father was a well known Cantor at a large synagogue in Berlin. In 1939, just before the outbreak of WWII, his parents sent Ernst and his brother to live with his mother's half sister, Clara Hirsch, and her husband, a physician in Brooklyn. Tragically, he never saw his parents again, for they were imprisoned and killed at Auschwitz in 1942.
After graduating from City University of New York, Ernst became a long-time employee of the Social Security Administration. He developed an interest in photography while still in high school, using an old pre-war Leica camera to shoot portraits and street scenes in Manhattan and Brooklyn. Eventually, he created a darkroom in his Brooklyn Heights apartment and developed his own negatives and prints.
Never married, Ernst Cohen bequeathed the contents of his apartment to his friend and neighbor, Elizabeth Cohan, who offered his photographs to the New-York Historical Society and the Brooklyn Historical Society. Ms. Cohan also provided the biographical information for this finding aide in an oral interview as well as a short written biography, a copy of which is located in the Print Room collection files.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged in three series.
Series I. Events includes street images of people at various events such as ethnic and holiday parades, street fairs, political rallies and demonstrations.
Series II. Cityscapes includes well-known streets, neighborhoods, public spaces, and candid shots of the people using them, as well as skyline photos.
Series III. Personal Photographs includes one photographs of Cohen and several photos of his Brooklyn Heights apartment.
Scope and Contents
The Ernst Cohen Photograph Collection consists of approximately 400 black and white photographs of Manhattan from 1964 thru 2002, with the bulk of the images from the 1990's. In addition to street scenes that document New Yorkers going about everyday life, Cohen photographed a number of special events, including parades (Gay Pride, St. Patrick's Day, Turkish Day, and others), a Russ Perot rally, and various street fairs. Cohen's style reflects the documentary small-format camera street photography tradition popular during the 1960's and 70's in the United States with photographers such as Gary Winogrand and Robert Frank.
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Conditions Governing Access
Materials in this collection may be stored offsite. For more information on making arrangements to consult them, please visit www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.
Conditions Governing Use
Taking images of documents from the library collections for reference purposes by using hand-held cameras and in accordance with the library's photography guidelines is encouraged. As an alternative, patrons may request up to 20 images per day from staff.
Application to use images from this collection for publication should be made in writing to: Department of Rights and Reproductions, The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024-5194, rightsandrepro@nyhistory.org. Phone: (212) 873-3400 ext. 282.
Copyrights and other proprietary rights may subsist in individuals and entities other than the New-York Historical Society, in which case the patron is responsible for securing permission from those parties. For fuller information about rights and reproductions from N-YHS visit: https://www.nyhistory.org/about/rights-reproductions
Preferred Citation
This collection should be cited as: Ernst Cohen Photograph Collection, PR 280, Department of Prints, Photographs and Architectural Collections, The New-York Historical Society.
Location of Materials
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated by Elizabeth Cohan, 2009.