Ola Cohn

Who was Ola Cohn?

Ola Cohn, born Carola Cohn in Bendigo was an Australian artist, author and philanphropist best known for her work in sculpture in a modernist style and famous for her Fairies Tree in the Fitzroy Gardens, Melbourne.

Ola was educated at Girton College, Bendigo, then studied drawing and sculpture at the Bendigo School of Mines. She continued her studies in Melbourne at Swinburne Technical College and then at the Royal College of Art in London. On her return to Melbourne in 1930 she established a studio at 9 Collins Street, and later moving to Gipps Street, East Melbourne.

Her works in bronze, stone and wood are held in many state and regional galleries. Important works include:

⁕the Fairies' Tree in the Fitzroy Gardens, Melbourne which she sculpted between 1931 and 1934 and donated to the children of Melbourne and

⁕the statue for the Pioneer Women's Memorial Garden in Adelaide, South Australia, carved in limestone in 1940-1941.

The Fairies Tree work also inspired the writing and publication of The Fairies' Tree, More about the Fairies' Tree and Castles in the Air. Her book Mostly Cats was published in 1964.