Caroline Coon (born 1945) is an English artist, journalist and political activist. Her artwork often explores sexual themes from a feminist standpoint. Coon had her first solo painting exhibition at The Gallery Liverpool entitled "Caroline Coon: The Great Offender" which ran through May 2018.

Life

Coon was born to a family of Kent landowners and had five brothers. She left home at 16 and moved to London to find a job. She lived in

Notting Hill Notting Hill is a district of West London, England, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Notting Hill is known for being a cosmopolitan and multicultural neighbourhood, hosting the annual Notting Hill Carnival and Portobello Road Ma ...

and began by doing some modelling work, including making a softcore porn film. Trained as a figurative painter, she became involved in the 1960s underground movement in London while attending art school. In 1967, with Rufus Harris, she co-founded

Release Release may refer to: * Art release, the public distribution of an artistic production, such as a film, album, or song * Legal release, a legal instrument * News release, a communication directed at the news media * Release (ISUP), a code to iden ...

, an agency set up to provide legal advice and arrange legal representation for young people charged with the possession of drugs. She remains politically active, campaigning primarily for feminist causes, including the legalisation of prostitution and the legalisation of drugs. She was educated at Legat Ballet School (1950-55), the

Royal Ballet School The Royal Ballet School is a British school of classical ballet training founded in 1926 by the Anglo-Irish ballerina and choreographer Ninette de Valois. The school's aim is to train and educate outstanding classical ballet dancers, especially ...

(1955-61),

Northampton College Northampton College is a further education college in Northampton, England, which opened in 1973, following building work which started in 1970. The college's main campus is at Booth Lane which provides almost all courses offered, and later expa ...

of Art (Fine Art Pre-diploma 1963-65), Central St Martins College of Art (Fine Art 1965-67) and

Brunel University London Brunel University London is a public research university located in the Uxbridge area of London, England. It was founded in 1966 and named after the Victorian engineer and pioneer of the Industrial Revolution, Isambard Kingdom Brunel. In June 1 ...

(PSE 1970-72). In the 1970s, she became involved in the London

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

scene, writing about bands for '' Melody Maker'' and providing artwork for groups including

The Clash The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the w ...

, whom she briefly managed, and

The Police The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For most of their history the line-up consisted of primary songwriter Sting (lead vocals, bass guitar), Andy Summers (guitar) and Stewart Copeland (drums, percussion). The Polic ...

. Her interviews and reviews were noted for interrogating the attitudes of leading punk bands toward gender and sexuality. In the " Punky Business" episode of the BBC comedy series ''

The Goodies The Goodies were a trio of British comedians: Tim Brooke-Taylor (17 July 1940–12 April 2020), Graeme Garden (b. 18 February 1943) and Bill Oddie (b. 7 July 1941). The trio created, wrote for and performed in their eponymous television com ...

'',

Jane Asher Jane Asher (born 5 April 1946)The International Who's Who of Women, 3rd edition, ed. Elizabeth Sleeman, Europa Publications, 2002, p. 29 is an English actress and author. She achieved early fame as a child actress and has worked extensively in f ...

plays a parody of Coon ("Caroline Kook"), the dream lover of

Tim Brooke-Taylor Timothy Julian Brooke-Taylor OBE (17 July 194012 April 2020) was an English actor and comedian best known as a member of The Goodies. He became active in performing in comedy sketches while at the University of Cambridge and became president ...

's aspiring punk rock star. Coon also inspired Robert Wyatt's lyrics for the

Matching Mole Matching Mole were an English progressive rock band associated with the Canterbury scene. Robert Wyatt formed the band in October 1971 after he left Soft Machine and recorded his first solo album, '' The End of an Ear'' (4 December 1970). He c ...

song "O Caroline",

The Stranglers The Stranglers are an English rock band who emerged via the punk rock scene. Scoring 23 UK top 40 singles and 19 UK top 40 albums to date in a career spanning five decades, the Stranglers are one of the longest-surviving bands to have origin ...

' "London Lady" and, in her view,

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

's "

She Belongs to Me "She Belongs to Me" is a song by Bob Dylan, and was first released as the second track on his 1965 album ''Bringing It All Back Home''. The song is often thought to be a metaphor for America. Recording The version of the song that appears on ''B ...

", although other women have also been identified as the subject of the song. In 1995 her painting ''Mr Olympia'' was not shown at

Tate Liverpool Tate Liverpool is an art gallery and museum in Liverpool, Merseyside, England, and part of Tate, along with Tate St Ives, Cornwall, Tate Britain, London, and Tate Modern, London. The museum was an initiative of the Merseyside Development C ...

because the male subject had a semi-erect penis. In June 2000 she won

damages At common law, damages are a remedy in the form of a monetary award to be paid to a claimant as compensation for loss or injury. To warrant the award, the claimant must show that a breach of duty has caused foreseeable loss. To be recognised at ...

of £40,000 and legal costs of £33,000 from publisher

Random House Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by Germ ...

after author

Jonathon Green Jonathon Green (born 20 April 1948 in Kidderminster, Worcestershire) is an English lexicographer of slang and writer on the history of alternative cultures. Jonathon Green is often referred to as the English-speaking world's leading lexicographer ...

made false claims regarding her in his 1998 book ''All Dressed Up: the Sixties and the Counterculture''. Coon published an intimate memoir, ''Laid Bare'', in 2016.

Publications

*''The Release Report on Drug Offenders and the Law''. Sphere, 1969. . *''1988: The New Wave Punk Rock Explosion''. Hawthorn, 1977. . *''Laid Bare – Diary – 1983–1984''. Cunst Art, 2016. .

References

External links

Caroline Coon website
*
Release
{{DEFAULTSORT:Coon, Caroline 1945 births Living people Bisexual artists Bisexual feminists Bisexual women English women painters English music journalists People educated at the Royal Ballet School Alumni of Brunel University London Alumni of Saint Martin's School of Art Melody Maker writers LGBT artists from the United Kingdom LGBT writers from England English women journalists Women writers about music 21st-century British women artists 21st-century English women 21st-century English people 21st-century LGBT people

Life

Publications

See also

References

External links