Heather Gendron
Robert B. Haas Family Arts Library, Yale University Director
United States
Hi! I'm Director of the Robert B. Haas Arts Library at Yale University and a past president of the Art Libraries Society of North America (ARLIS/NA). Previously, I was Head of UNC Chapel Hill’s Sloane Art Library, Adjunct Professor at UNC’s School of Information and Library Science (SILS), and Head of the Art & Architecture Library at Virginia Tech. I'm a working artist and designer with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Visual Arts from Purchase College and a Master of Library and Information Science from The University of Texas at Austin.
Born in upstate New York, my family moved to southern New Mexico in the 70’s where I grew up blissfully among jackrabbits, roadrunners, and tumbleweeds. I’m an artist and designer with a background in printmaking. After twenty-five years of being what I call a “dormant artist” (creating art sporadically since graduating from art school) I set up a home studio and now have a regular art and design practice creating paintings, prints, textiles, and public art. Inspiration comes from many places, but mainly the natural world, feminist thought, comic art, and self-taught/folk art. I have a dynamic color sense and use bold shapes to describe life experiences, dreams, and imaginary worlds.
When I’m not doing art-related things, I’m playing with my house rabbits (Basil and Nick), watching stand-up comedy, or gardening. I live in a cute midcentury house in New Haven, CT with my husband Ed who is also a talented artist.