Barton P. and Mary Davidson Cohen

As longtime supporters of Johnson County Community College, Dr. Mary Davidson Cohen and the late Barton P. Cohen have made a tremendous impact in our greater community through their generous philanthropy on behalf of the arts and education. Together as a couple and in their own accomplished careers and widespread charitable work, Bart and Mary made giving back to the community a priority.

Mary Cohen philathropist of the Nerman museum and the arts.

The Cohens have long been supporters of the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art. An area on the second floor of the museum that serves as a project space for local artists was named the Barton P. and Mary D. Cohen Gallery in 2005. In 2009 the college accepted a gift of $1,000,000 to establish the Barton P. and Mary D. Cohen Art Acquisition endowment, the first donor-designated endowment for the museum. A 2014 gift from the Barton P. and Mary Davidson Cohen Charitable Trust will allow for the creation of the Kansas Focus Gallery. The new 539-square-foot Kansas Focus Gallery is expected to open later this year and will be devoted to the works of artists associated with the state of Kansas. In addition, since 2010 Mary has hosted nearly 100 episodes of JCCC’s “It’s Our Community” talk show on the college’s cable channel.

A lifelong educator, Mary Davidson Cohen served as the secretary’s regional representative for the United States Department of Education, responsible for the states of Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas and Missouri. For 18 years she was the assistant vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University of Kansas, managing its facility in Johnson County, and she later served as vice president and dean of the graduate school at the University of Saint Mary. She has also served as one of two non-lawyer members of the judicial qualification committee of the Kansas Supreme Court. In 2012, she served as interim president and CEO of the National World War I Museum at Liberty Memorial. 

Barton P. Cohen, who passed away in 2006, was president of Metcalf Bancshares Inc., a member of the law firm Blackwell Sanders Peper Martin, a board member of the Kansas Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, a member of the advisory board for Bleeding Kansas National Heritage Area, and a member of the Johnson County Heritage Trust Fund Grant Review Board.

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    Painting of a Northern flicker bird centered over a yellow oval on a blue sky landscape background abstract artwork with a large white figure and red, blue, brown, yellow and green shapes and figures profile drawing of an old man with a beard and hat painting of two donkeys standing in front of a brown barn and a blue sky day
    Large Grey Formal/Nahema by Justin Beachler rectangular sterling silver case with a diagonal zig zag line motif black and white artwork depicting a tree with all branches trimmed and a frenetic circular motif filling the rest of the space around the trunk painting of a roadway with a blank billboard in the center
    black painting with a central blue/green rectangle in perspective photograph of four young children engaged in various activities on a screened in porch painting of dark purples, blues, greens and oranges depicting various houses, waterfalls and figures painting depicting Christ at a table with six other figures
    abstract black and white drawing of 5 clown figures abstract black and white drawing of 2 figures in front of buildings black and white drawing of a masked figure black and white drawing of 7 figures playing instruments
    black and white ink brush drawing of abstract figures abstract painting of a figure wearing a suit jacket and green tie on a dark background landscape of a dirt road running though dry hills and patches of pine trees detailed black and white drawing depicting a small house and a large tree with two figures working in the yard
    detailed black and white drawing depicting a man in a hat and suit holding a bell and standing in front of a wheeled machine autumn landscape of grasses, hills and trees autumn landscape of grasses, hills and trees etched silver jewelry featuring a turquoise pendant
    black and white wood block print of a barn and farm house a blue-green painting with four small objects - two lures and two tiny insects A Native American man with a feather headdress and cultural clothing depicted in a dance pose A Native American figure holding a spear and wearing a deer skin and beaded clothing depicted in a dance pose
    A Native American figure wearing feather wings and tail and beaded clothing depicted in a dance pose black and white print of 5 men performing stunts on ladders in front of an audience dark black and white drawing of a group of men hating with a large dog with one on horseback 3 abstract figures painted in dark colors with white head scarves
    A black and white depiction of an old brick and stone building Untitled painting by Paulina Jones Everett colorful, geometric abstract work of art featuring the words Rainbow Room black and white drawing of a steam train engine on a turntable with two figures
    two black goat silhouettes and a goat head on a white background a large shield shape painted with bright triangles of various sizes a ceramic bowl with an eagle depicted on it - glazed in blacks, browns, golds, blues and grays a bright abstract work with a dark figure in a red dress
    a black and white depiction of a sad figure sitting on a couch - she is wearing a turtleneck, a skirt and sandals diptych - first pairing shows a worker with a leaf blower in front of a tall green hedge. The second shows two figures walking in front of a white building a black and white depiction of a sitting woman who is looking off and to the right sculpture of a seated female figure with a snake that is holding an apple draped around her shoulders
    sculpture of a female figure with raised arms and hair standing on end in front of flames 3 flowers in front of a blue notebook with a mouth and fangs of a dog or cat a black and white depiction of a horse and rider crossing a stone bridge in winter painting of yellow-leafed aspens and spruce trees on a bright day
    landscape painting of grasses, flowers and trees near a still stream on a windy and partly cloudy day aerial landscape of brown fields, with light reflecting off rivers and ponds and dark clouds in the sky drawing of a man plowing a field with a donkey an intricately beaded cradleboard decorated with a bird motif
    an intricately beaded shirt depicting horses, birds, buffalo and a central figure landscape featuring a central log cabin with mountains behind it. a Native American doll with beaded clothing and two long braids a black and white depiction of four row boats and trees on a lake
    lack and white depiction of a woman and child walking in front of an old house with a picket fence landscape painting of a large tree in the foreground and a mountain valley in the background painting one a large red grainery on a sunny day a textural abstract work in whites, grays and creams
    a black and white depiction of a grain elevator featuring an old-fashioned car and many overhead wires a contour line drawing of two seated women an etching of the front of the Mayetta, Kansas post office featuring two figures stepping into the street a drawing of a seated woman with short dark hair who is looking directly at the viewer with a blank expression
    black and white depiction of three seated women working on various art projects a painting of a seated woman holding a large hat as she gazes out of a balcony a landscape painting with men riding horses in the foreground and a house and mountains in the background. The horses are drinking out of a watering hole that is also in the foreground. sculpture by Kahlil Robert Irving entitled Kaleidoscopic Lucas
    Portrait No. 4 by Ronald Jackson landscape painting by Keith Jacobshagen A Native American figure in traditional dress on a background that is half red and half blue painting by Michael Kabotie
    Geometric Rood painting by Don Kottmann a colored drawing of a smiling elderly couple an abstract painting of sailboats in the background. In the foreground are black, gray and white shapes obscuring part of the view. a work depicting three donkey in front of four circus tents and a ferris wheel
    mixed media work by Patrick Martinez entitled Sold (Old Merchant God) landscape painting by David Selby a suitcase with a figure painting on the side in white and red black and white photograph of a derelict building
    black and white photograph of Plaza Liquors in Kansas City colorful mixed media work depicting a mesa village print depicting the inside of a rundown museum painting depicting a skull sitting on top of an American flag
    landscape painting depicting a farm during the winter - snow is covering the fields a black and white work showing four men working on a railroad a sketch of a mountainous region work of art that depicts a person taking a photo (with a cell phone) of a man in tactical gear and gas mask advancing toward them
    mixed media abstract painting watercolor painting depicting three green trees abstracted figure painting abstracted figure painting of an dancing Native American
    contemporary painting depicting two figures on either side of a fence with a desert landscape in the background. The woman in the foreground is shown from the back, looking toward the fence. She has green skin, and black hair that is put-up with flowers on top. The viewer can only see the red hair of the figure on the other side of the fence which is sticking up. silver and turquoise necklace a ceramic truck, the trailer of which is shaped like a taco an abstract face of reds, blues, whites and grays
    an abstract figure showing the hand, head and shoulders of a man a woman stands next to a shrouded seated figure. They are surrounded by blue/white/gray fabrics all around A collection of paintings depicting various vehicles on different sized panels a series of colorful rectangles set within an arched doorway shape
    A black and white work depicting a large male figure in the foreground playing fiddle and two couples dancing in the background a series of 12 identical female figures in rows of three set against a white background. Each is a different color. A bolo tie with three silver bats