Shirley Kinsey
Kinsey smiling at the camera
Kinsey in 2016
Born (1946-02-07) February 7, 1946
Lake City, Florida
Education
  • Florida A&M University
  • Pepperdine University
SpouseBernard Kinsey

Shirley Kinsey (née Pooler; born February 7, 1946) is a Los Angeles-based philanthropist, art collector, and former school teacher known, along with husband Bernard and son Khalil, as the owner of Kinsey Collection, one of the largest private collections of African-American history and art in the world.

Early life and education

Shirley was born to Erma and Eddie Pooler on February 7, 1946, in Lake City, Florida.[1] She attended university at Florida A&M University, where she met Bernard Kinsey, her future husband, following her arrest at a civil rights protest.[2] She graduated with a degree in English in 1967.[1] Shirley and Bernard married the same year and set a goal of travelling the world together.[3] The couple was married in Tallahassee at the First Baptist Institutional Church, followed by a reception in the faculty lounge at the university.[4] Following graduation she was hired as a teacher with the Compton Unified School District.[1] She later returned to school, graduating in 1976 from Pepperdine University with a master's degree in multi-cultural education.[1]

Kinsey African American Art & History Collection

Shirley and Bernard began collecting art as a way of documenting their travels.[5][6] Realizing they knew little of their own history and culture, the couple began collecting African-American art, literature and manuscripts eventually amassing one of the largest private collections in the world.[7] Their collecting expanded following the birth of their son Khalil as a way of documenting where he came from outside of narratives focused on slavery.[2] Pieces from their collection has toured extensively across the United States since 2006.[3] The collection was exhibited internationally for the first time in 2016 in Hong Kong.[7] Khalil Kinsey works closely with his parents having served as chief operating officer and curator of collection and as vice president of the Bernard and Shirley Kinsey Foundation.[8] The Kinsey family and their collection were featured on Episode 26 of the podcast This Is Love in 2020.[9]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Shirley Kinsey's Biography". The HistoryMakers. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  2. 1 2 Melton, Monica (June 19, 2020). "The Most Famous Collector Of African American Art Is Using The Past To Reframe A Better Future". Forbes. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  3. 1 2 "An American family, their American dream and a shared American story". news.aa.com. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  4. ↑ "Miss Shirley Rose Pooler and Bernard William Kinsey Marry". The Palm Beach Post. February 18, 1967. p. 12.
  5. ↑ "Kinsey African American Art & History Collection Coming to TAM". South Sound Magazine. February 17, 2021.
  6. ↑ "The Kinsey African American Art & History Collection Coming This Summer to TAM". The Suburban Times. February 9, 2021. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  7. 1 2 Moxley, Mitch. "One Family's Mission to Preserve the Story of African-Americans". www.barrons.com. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  8. ↑ Dobson, Byron (January 22, 2016). ""African American Treasures" from Kinsey Collection come to FAMU". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  9. ↑ "Episode 26: The Kinseys". thisislovepodcast.com. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
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