Gubbay, Aline, 1920-2005

• Aline Albert

Photographer, art historian and writer, Aline Gubbay was born on June 20th, 1920 in Alexandria, Egypt. In 1924, she and her family moved to England. She won a scholarship to study at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London in 1935. Following her father's advice, she chose later to study photography privately under the tutelage of photographer Germaine Kanova in London, England. Under Kanova, Gubbay became a well-known portrait photographer. In 1948, she married Eric Gubbay and moved to Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. She had three children, Sharon, Michelle and Diana. In 1956, the Gubbay family moved to Montreal where she earned a degree in Social Work at McGill University and later, a Master's degree in Art History in 1978 from Concordia University. She taught Art History at the Visual Arts Centre and Costume History at Lasalle College. She was also president of the Westmount Historical Society. She wrote several books and newspaper articles which she illustrated with her own photographs. Her material was exhibited at Victoria Hall and at the Westmount Public Library. Aline Gubbay died in 2005 of pancreatic cancer.