McElroy, Guy C.

Guy Clinton McElroy, art historian and curator, specialist in African-American art.

Born in 1948, and raised in Fairmont, West Virginia, he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Art Education from Fairmont State College in West Virginia (1970), and was awarded the Master of Arts degree in Art History, specializing in nineteenth century American and French art from the University of Cincinnati (1972). McElroy earned a second Master of Arts degree from Emerson College in Boston in Mass Communications, specializing in video production (1975). Between 1976 and ca.1980, he studied seventeenth century Dutch art, and later nineteenth century painting. Between 1983 and 1990 McElroy was enrolled at the University of Maryland as a Ph.D. student in the Department of Art, specializing in African-American art. A car accident which left him a paraplegic, led to his death in May, 1990.

McElroy held numerous art historian and curatorial positions in museums throughout the country during his twenty-year career. He held short-term positions at the following institutions: Cincinnati Art Museum (1970-1971), Utah Museum of Fine Arts (1972-1973), Emerson College (1973-1874), Museum of Afro-American History in Boston (1974), Walnut Creek Civic Art Gallery in California (1975), and the de Young Museum in San Francisco (1974-1976). From 1978-1982 he did administrative work and arranged and described the photograph archives. From 1982-1988 he served as Assistant Director.

McElroy made his most significant contribution to the art world in his capacity as guest curator at the Corcoran Galley of Art in Washington, D.C. (1986-1990). He curated the exhibition "Facing History: The Black Image in American Art, 1710-1940," which opened in 1990. This show, which received national attention, examined the ways in which American artists, both African-American and white, "reinforced a number of largely restrictive stereotypes of black identity," as McElroy wrote in the accompanying catalog.

From the description of Guy C. McElroy papers, 1969-1990. (New York Public Library). WorldCat record id: 122346236

Guy Clinton McElroy, art historian and curator, specialist in African-American art. Born in 1948, and raised in Fairmont, West Virginia, he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Art Education from Fairmont State College in West Virginia (1970), and was awarded the Master of Arts degree in Art History, specializing in nineteenth century American and French art from the University of Cincinnati (1972). McElroy earned a second Master of Arts degree from Emerson College in Boston in Mass Communications, specializing in video production (1975). Between 1976 and ca.1980, he studied seventeenth century Dutch art, and later nineteenth century painting. Between 1983 and 1990 McElroy was enrolled at the University of Maryland as a Ph.D. student in the Department of Art, specializing in African-American art. A car accident which left him a paraplegic, led to his death in May, 1990.

McElroy held numerous art historian and curatorial positions in museums throughout the country during his twenty-year career. He held short-term positions at the following institutions: Cincinnati Art Museum (1970-1971), Utah Museum of Fine Arts (1972-1973), Emerson College (1973-1874), Museum of Afro-American History in Boston (1974), Walnut Creek Civic Art Gallery in California (1975), and the de Young Museum in San Francisco (1974-1976). From 1978-1982 he did administrative work and arranged and described the photograph archives. From 1982-1988 he served as Assistant Director.

McElroy made his most significant contribution to the art world in his capacity as guest curator at the Corcoran Galley of Art in Washington, D.C. (1986-1990). He curated the exhibition "Facing History: The Black Image in American Art, 1710-1940," which opened in 1990. This show, which received national attention, examined the ways in which American artists, both African-American and white, "reinforced a number of largely restrictive stereotypes of black identity," as McElroy wrote in the accompanying catalog.

From the guide to the Guy C. McElroy papers, 1969-1990, (The New York Public Library. Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division.)