Alexander was born on March 6, 1912 in New York City. He received his B.S. from Columbia University in 1934 and began his graduate work there. During World War II, Alexander worked with the Office of War Information as an overseas editor and with the U.S. Army Air Corps as a public relations officer. After the war, he worked in a variety of positions as a consultant to The Reporter, editor of The Journal of the United Nations (1952) and as an English instructor for the Italian Air Ministry in Rome. In the 1950's and 1960's, he taught at various colleges and universities in the U.S. and Italy.
Alexander has written several books, an Off-Broadway play and compiled several books of poetry. From 1978 to 1982, he was a Visiting Professor with the Art History Department at VCU and in the Spring of 1984, he returned as an adjunct Professor in the Art History Department.
From the guide to the Sidney Alexander Collection, 1959-1995, (Special Collections and Archives, James Branch Cabell Library, Virginia Commonwealth University)
