Say hello to Emil Cohen, Loveland summer shop assistant. Emil is a photographer and recent graduate of the Massachusetts College of Art. He’s always wanted a creative career, and will soon move to London to pursue that dream. “I’m interested in exploring the definition of portraiture,” he says. “The focus of my photography has been LGBT related, and photographers like Alec Soth, and Bryan Schutmaat have taught me that a portrait can be a collective of photos, comprised of landscapes, still life and people that together make up one portrait.”
What is your first memory of Provincetown?
Coming to town three years ago in September, and feeling a sense of tranquility. I didn’t see it in the summer until the following year, so when I arrived after Labor Day, I saw a quiet town. Though the streets weren’t packed with people, I understood that this was a special place that I’d love to come back to and hopefully spend a significant amount of time in.
What was your first summer job?
My first summer job was a camp counselor at a Jewish sleep-away camp in Olympia, Washington called Camp Solomon Schechter. I was a camper there all my childhood and ended up working there for about 3 seasons. Being a camp counselor was like living and breathing the film Wet Hot American Summer. Everyday was a new adventure, regardless of the routine. I believe that I was of the last generation to go to camp without a cell phone or tablet that connected to the outside world. Being removed from everything forced us as campers and staff to make do with what we had. It allowed us to have real conversations with people without any distractions and use our imagination to come up with ways to have fun. Being disconnected also helped create a deep well of traditions that are still practiced to this day at camp. I’ll just say that the Greasy Watermelon Challenge was an annual highlight.
What do you love most about Loveland?
I love how Loveland is a daily destination for so many people. I loved seeing the patio in front of the store filled with people catching up and greeting each other with genuine cheerfulness. This camaraderie and friendship makes Loveland feel more than a store, and instead a piece of Provincetown that matters to people. And the spontaneous dance parties with Josh to Marvin Gaye & Diana Ross, Donna Summer, and Sarah Vaughn singing the Beatles don’t hurt either!
Lobster, clams or mussels?
None…. Fish & Chips! Always my guilty pleasure ever since I was a child living in British Columbia near a fishing town called Stevenson. Sorry Lobstah, not today!
Josh by Emil Cohen