A major contributor to this article appears to have a
close connection with its subject. (December 2020) |
Dianna Cohen | |
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Born | 1965 Los Angeles, CA |
Alma mater | University of California, Los Angeles |
Occupation(s) | Activist and visual artist |
Years active | 1989-present |
Known for | Plastic Pollution Coalition (co-founder) |
Website |
diannacohen |
Dianna Cohen is an American visual artist and activist. [1] She is the CEO and co-founder of the Plastic Pollution Coalition, an advocacy group and social movement organization which seeks to reduce plastic pollution. [2] [3]
Cohen grew up in Los Angeles. Her father was a filmmaker, and her mother the director of the Los Angeles Free Clinic. [4] She attended UCLA, where she studied biology before shifting her major to art. [5]
Following her graduation, Cohen began working in collage, initially using deconstructed brown paper bags, and later incorporating plastic. Her first solo exhibition of the bag series was in 1994. [5]
After eight years of working with plastic bags, Cohen realized the plastic was degrading. In a 2015 interview she said: “At first I got excited because I thought that it meant the plastic bags were ephemeral and organic like us, and that they had a finite lifespan.” In researching the subject, she discovered that "plastic photodegrades or heat-degrades by breaking apart, but does not disappear." [5] In 2009, after learning about the Great Pacific garbage patch, she founded the Plastic Pollution Coalition (PPC) with her sister, Julia Cohen, Manuel Maqueda, Daniella Russo and Lisa Boyle. [2] [6] She has led the Plastic Pollution Coalition's efforts to eliminate the use of single-use containers for beer, water and other drinks at music festivals and concerts. [7]
Cohen has received awards for her environmental activism. She was named Environmentalist of the Year by SIMA in 2019. [8] In 2016, she was presented the inaugural Snow Angel Award by the Sun Valley Film Festival. [9]
Cohen and her partner, Jackson Browne, live in Los Angeles. [10] They were co-executive producers on the 2020 documentary The Story of Plastic. [11] She has surfed since 1996. [12]