Gail Hansberry (born 1939) is an American artist and educator.

Early life and education

Hansberry was born in Washington, D.C. on September 4, 1939 to Myrtle and William Hansberry. She is the cousin of the playwright

Lorraine Hansberry Lorraine Vivian Hansberry (May 19, 1930 – January 12, 1965) was a playwright and writer. She was the first African-American female author to have a play performed on Broadway. Her best-known work, the play ''A Raisin in the Sun'', highlig ...

. She attended

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commissi ...

receiving her B.A. in 1960, and

Smith College Smith College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts Women's colleges in the United States, women's college in Northampton, Massachusetts. It was chartered in 1871 by Sophia Smith (Smith College ...

receiving her master's degree in 1962.

Career

Hansberry started her career teaching art in Washington, D.C. at Taft Junior High School. She went on to teach art history at

North Carolina College North Carolina Central University (NCCU or NC Central) is a public historically black university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by James E. Shepard in affiliation with the Chautauqua movement in 1909, it was supported by private funds from ...

. By 1966 Hansberry moved to New York where she worked as a researcher at

Time-Life Books Time Life, with sister subsidiaries StarVista Live and Lifestyle Products Group, a holding of Direct Holdings Global LLC, is an American production company and direct marketer conglomerate, that is known for selling books, music, video/DVD, ...

and as a freelance photographer. In 1980 she returned to Washington, D.C. where she worked for the

United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other n ...

as an English language officer. From 1990 through 1992 Hansberry served as the Director of the

Association for the Study of African American Life and History The Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) is an organization dedicated to the study and appreciation of African-American History. It is a non-profit organization founded in Chicago, Illinois, on September 9, 1915 ...

Legacy

In 2017 Hansberry's work was included in the exhibition ''Legacy, The 2017 African American Art Exhibit'' at the Friendship Gallery in Chevy Chase, Maryland. Her prints and handmade books are held in collections both private and public, including at the

North Carolina Museum of Art The North Carolina Museum of Art (NCMA) is an art museum in Raleigh, North Carolina. It opened in 1956 as the first major museum collection in the country to be formed by state legislation and funding. Since the initial 1947 appropriation that e ...

, the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...

, and the

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture is a research library of the New York Public Library (NYPL) and an archive repository for information on people of African descent worldwide. Located at 515 Malcolm X Boulevard (Lenox Avenue) b ...

References

External links

Gail Hansberry interviewed by The HistoryMakers
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hansberry, Gail 1939 births Living people People from Washington, D.C. African-American women artists 20th-century African-American women 20th-century African-American artists