April 2, 1918 Charles White, graphic artist and educator, was born in Chicago, Illinois. White became interested in art by the age of seven and at 14 was working as a sign painter. White earned a scholarship to the Art Institute of Chicago and graduated in 1937. After graduation, he joined the Works Project Administration […]
Tag Archives | April 2
Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr. – April 2nd in African American History
April 2, 1939 Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr. (Marvin Gaye), instrumentalist, singer and songwriter, was born in Washington, D. C. Gaye started as a member of The Moonglows in 1958 and after they disbanded in 1960, he moved to Detroit, Michigan and signed with Motown Records. Gaye experienced his first significant success in 1962 as co-writer […]
Julius Arthur Hemphill – April 2nd in African American History
April 2, 1995 Julius Arthur Hemphill, jazz composer and saxophone player, died. Hemphill was born January 24, 1938 in Fort Worth, Texas. He joined the United States Army in 1964 and served for several years. In 1968, Hemphill moved to St. Louis, Missouri and co-founded the Black Artists’ Group, a multi-disciplinary arts collective. He moved […]