Dutch Artist Simon Cohen dies of accident injuries

PHUKET: Well-known Dutch artist Simon Cohen, 72, died on February 1, probably of internal injuries suffered during a traffic accident on January 28.

Mr Cohen did not respond when his Thai wife tried to waken him early Saturday.

Chalong police said he had been dead about three hours when they arrived at the couple’s home in Rawai Moo 7, not far from the viewpoint overlooking Kata Noi beach.

He had lived in Thailand, nearly always on Phuket, for 24 years.

Investigators said they were informed that the deceased was injured after losing control of his car while approaching an intersection at Nai Harn Beach last Wednesday.

In that incident, he suffered serious bruising and was rushed for treatment to Bangkok Hospital in Phuket Town by rescue workers from Phuket Ruamjai Kupai Foundation.

Police said he was released by the hospital to recuperate at home after being examined by a physician and receiving unspecified drugs. Friday night, police learned, Cohen went to bed as usual, then apparently died in his sleep.

In the morning, his wife, Daeng, “called him to breakfast and to take the medicine prescribed by the doctor”, but after looking in the bedroom of their single-story home to see why he did not respond, she found him dead on the bed.

Investigation revealed no sign of foul play. Police speculated he died of internal injuries suffered in the auto accident.

Simon Cohen’s life story might easily provide the basis of a romantic novel.

He began painting abstract art in 1979, after working as a photographer for National Geographic.

An feature about Mr Cohen’s life will appear in the upcoming hard-copy edition of the Phuket Gazette.

— Siangtai Daily