Terri Cohn

Biography: Terri Cohn is an independent curator, writer, and art historian dedicated to preserving and contextualizing the contributions of women and underrecognized artists in the Bay Area and California. Her work focuses on oral histories, ecological practices, and the legacy of community and artist-run spaces. Cohn has contributed to numerous publications including Art in America, Art Practical, Artweek, caa.reviews, Frieze, Public Art Review, Sculpture Magazine, SFAQ, and Stretcher. She has authored or edited books and catalogs including Pairing of Polarities: The Life and Art of Sonya Rapoport (2012) and co-authored the book Sonya Rapoport: Objects On My Dresser (2022, with Alla Efimova), a deep dive into this underrecognized early feminist computer art project. Central to her work are in-depth interviews with artists including Betsy Damon, Terry Fox, David Ireland, Tom Marioni, Linda Montano, John Waters, Pippilotti Rist, and Bonnie Ora Sherk. She has curated numerous exhibitions for museums and galleries, including the de Saisset Museum, Kala Art Institute, Mills College Art Museum, San José Institute of Contemporary Art, the Berkeley Art Center, and the Berkeley Art Museum, where she served as interim Matrix curator. She has lectured widely in the US and abroad, and taught at the San Francisco Art Institute and the University of California, Berkeley’s Art and Design Extension Program. Through Terri Cohn Art Services she advises estates, and offers comprehensive consulting services, supporting artists, institutions, and collectors with her research, writing, curatorial expertise, and professional appraisals.