[1] Hassan was born in Juba, South Sudan, and received an undergraduate degree from the University of Khartoum in 1978.
[3] In addition to his positions at Cornell, Hassan serves as Dean of The Africa Institute of the Global Studies University in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.
[5] Hassan is an editor and co-founder of Nka: Journal of Contemporary African Art, published by Duke University Press.
[6] He has authored, edited, and co-edited several books, including Ahmed Morsi: A Dialogic Imagination (2021), Ibrahim El Salahi: A Visionary Modernist (2012), Darfur and the Crisis of Governance: A Critical Reader (2009), and Art and Islamic Literacy among the Hausa of Northern Nigeria (1992).
[1] He has curated and co-curated numerous international exhibitions, such as Authentic/Ex-Centric at the 49th Venice Biennale (2001), Unpacking Europe at Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen (2001–2002), and The Khartoum School: The Making of the Modern Art Movement in Sudan 1945–Present at the Sharjah Art Foundation (2014).