Meet MARTIN COHEN | Astrophotographer & Opera Singer

We had the good fortune of connecting with MARTIN COHEN and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi MARTIN, how has your background shaped the person you are today?
I am originally from the Netherlands. My father was a doctor and my mom a homemaker as well as a wonderful amateur singer. They would often make music together, my dad playing the piano – which he excelled at – and my mom singing art songs by Schubert, Brahms, Mendelssohn and many other composers, with her lovely soprano voice. So I was raised with music. I played some piano myself but got most of my musical training playing classical guitar.
Next to music, I was fascinated by the night sky and dreamed of becoming an astronomer. However, studying physics and mathematics at the University of Amsterdam was an exercise in boredom: my romantic expectations were shattered within months and I decided to attend film school instead. I don’t think my dad was too happy about that choice initially, but being selected out of hundreds of candidates made up for at least something and he let me follow my heart.
In the decades that followed, I explored the arts: I directed, I did some acting, I worked as a film editor and I finally focused on one discipline that I really enjoyed and that somehow seemed effortless: photography. I traveled a lot, had many exhibitions and supported myself with commercial work – portraiture, advertising and architectural/interior design photography.
Over the past fifteen years, my old passion for astronomy resurfaced, and my love for the night sky blended splendidly with my professional experience: I became an astrophotographer. Using telescopes and large tracking mounts that follow the rotation of the earth to allow for very long exposures – often many hours – I was able to create hi-res images of galaxies and nebulae as well as detailed close-ups of the moon and the planets. Many people liked the work and purchased prints to decorate their homes. I kept traveling and visited Cuba many times, culminating in a large exhibition of fifty color images at Palacio Nacional de Las Artes (also named Palais de Glace) in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Only five years ago, I discovered that I had a strong voice, a baritone. I had tried to sing some of the art songs that I remembered from childhood after my mom’s passing in 2016. During Covid, when my photography business went through an all time low, I took my first singing classes. It was magical. Very soon my teacher referred me to the Opera Theater at Santa Monica College (SMCOT). I have had principal roles in four operas since, performing at the beautiful Broad Stage. Most recently, I became a teacher at the Emeritus department of SMC. For over two years now, I have been teaching photography and for the past six month – to my own surprise – I have taught singing as well.
So it almost feels like coming full circle: the dreams I had as a boy and the music I grew up with have manifested decades later in unexpected ways.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Art. It’s a word that is used a lot and misused even more often. When I grew up in Amsterdam, the word “artist” was reserved for a very select group of people. These were people who devoted their lives to their chosen form of expression, suffering the setbacks of an often challenging lifestyle, dedicated to mastering their craft, finding joy in creating something unique and beautiful, something that organically flowed out of their lives, something that could not be stopped.
Maybe it is because of this background that I prefer to look at myself as a craftsman rather than an artist. Even better, don’t put any label on it! Any label that you put on a person becomes a restriction. We are all wired so differently, life has such a wealth of colors and qualities, it can get very strange and upsetting and right now we are living in a particularly upsetting and strange period. It’s never easy, and it’s not supposed to be easy. When it gets too easy, you get complacent and fry in your comfort zone.
I love my vacations and I love enjoying a glass of wine with my friends. But once I lose the fire of creation, of producing something meaningful, my life is on a downward slope. It is up to me to come up with a reason to continue, to find new projects and keep the flow going. I would like to quote my Buddhist mentor Daisaku Ikeda in this light: “Never for an instant forget the effort to renew your life, to build yourself anew. Creativity means to push open the heavy, groaning doorway of life itself. This is not an easy task. Indeed, it may be the most severely challenging struggle there is. For opening the door to your own life is in the end more difficult than opening the door to all the mysteries of the universe.”

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
1. The Getty Museum. It’s an architectural marvel and a fantastic collection of art. Their photography exhibitions are remarkable and constantly changing. There is always something new to see and I go there at least once or twice a year. You park in the garage and then take the little train up the hills to the main entrance. Not to be missed, it’s my favorite museum in Los Angeles.

2. Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine (17190 Sunset Blvd. Pacific Palisades, CA 90272. Phone: 310-454-4114). Unfortunately, it is temporarily closed after the Palisades fires. However, as soon as it reopens, it is so worth a visit! It is the most peaceful and inspiring garden on the Los Angeles west side. You can stay there for hours, meditate, enjoy the gorgeous nature and leave refreshed. So lovely.

3. The beaches! I am fortunate to live right by the beach in Santa Monica. I go there almost every day, just to feel the ocean. Going up Highway 1 is a great and beautiful ride and my very favorite beach is about an hour away: El Matador State Beach, which is actually a collection of three small cove beaches. Rocks, birds, sand – an absolutely splendid location.

4. The desert: Vasquez Rocks Natural Area is not too far (up the 5 freeway) and quite beautiful, with a little more time Joshua Tree National Park is not to be missed.

5. The mountains: Big Bear, Lake Arrowhead… rent a cabin and go hiking! Awesome nature.

6. Places to eat: too many to mention. In my own neighborhood, I like Chez Jay, which is right across the street from me. JFK used to meet here with Marilyn Monroe. They have a wonderful outside terrace. Then there is Cha Cha Chicken, inexpensive Carribean food, just a cool hangout. Sol Agave is next door to me and has a wonderful happy hour menu, I like their chicken flautas and they serve a very good margarita.

7. Hollywood – just for the heck of it, walk along Hollywood Boulevard and reminisce about the past glory. It’s really not that pretty anymore but still fun to see the Walk of Fame (walkoffame.com), and check out Mann’s Chinese Theater, do the tourist thing…

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
There are so many people that I have to thank for their wonderful support and mentorship. When it comes to my astrophotography, I learned a lot from Joe Gagnon, Rajeev Joshi, and Steve LePage. I am indebted to Jim Bailey, the director of Rock, Tree, Sky – a K12 school in Ojai, California. We built a wonderful observatory together with a large dome and a big telescope, where we share the wonders of the universe with the kids and their parents. It’s an ongoing work in progress and we are planning some future fundraisers. The skies are quite dark, allowing for serious astrophotography.

As far as my singing goes, clearly my mom was my inspiration. Music is important and I don’t think I could ever live without it. I owe a debt of gratitude to my amazing first teacher, Diana Zaslove Kahn. She saw my talent as well as my bad habits, she trained me to expand my vocal range and directed me to the Santa Monica College Opera Theater. It was there that I discovered the joy of working with a fantastic group of people, singing together and working together on different operas that we performed at the Broad Stage. The group is led by two women of remarkable strength and talent: Janelle DeStefano, the director of the opera program, who has become a dear friend and my teacher over the past five years; and our musical director Mercedes Juan Musotto. Mercedes is a force of nature and a constant source of inspiration – as well as a strict taskmaster! I cannot thank them both enough for everything they give, time after time. Finally, I’d like to thank Sky Lee, who has been our rehearsal pianist over the past two years. Her skills as a pianist are off the charts, and she has a kind and upbeat personality that inspires you to keep growing. Thank you, thank you!

Website: http://astro.martincohenphotography.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/martin_cohen_photography/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/martin-cohen-a0739630/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/martincohen1955/

Image Credits
Astrophotography by Martin Cohen, opera photographs by Ed Gandara