Isabella Di Lenardo

Isabella Di Lenardo is a Lecturer and Scientist at the Digital Humanities Institute (DHI) at École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), where she also serves as the coordinator of the EPFL Time Machine Unit and the European Local Time Machines. She holds affiliations across multiple departments, including DHI-GE, SAR-ENS, SHS-ENS, and EDDH-ENS, reflecting her interdisciplinary role in teaching and research.

Her educational background includes a PhD in Theories and Art History, with postdoctoral and faculty experience at institutions such as INHA (Paris), EPFL, and IUAV (Venice).

Her research spans Digital Humanities, Art History, Urban History, and GIS, with a focus on digital urban reconstruction, historical cadastres, and AI applications in cultural heritage. She employs advanced computational methods including machine learning, 4D modeling, and semantic segmentation to analyze historical maps, cadastral records, and art archives. Her work bridges humanities scholarship with computer science, particularly in reconstructing urban evolution and analyzing visual patterns.

The recent publications reveal a consistent trend in AI-powered historical data analysis, especially in processing non-standardized historical documents, reconstructing urban spaces, and developing open-source tools for digital heritage. Her work frequently involves large-scale datasets from Venice, Lausanne, Paris, and Jerusalem, demonstrating a transnational and interdisciplinary approach.

She has contributed to significant collaborative projects such as the Venice Time Machine, Parcels of Venice, and Time Machine Organization, often acting as a principal investigator or project leader. Her role involves coordinating diverse teams of researchers, engineers, and cultural institutions.

Scientific contributions include:

• Development of the Morphograph tool for visual pattern recognition in art archives
• Automatic vectorization and analysis of Napoleonic cadastres
• Creation of 4D models for historical cities
• AI-driven text and pattern extraction from historical maps
• Building discovery engines for digital art history

She actively teaches ex cathedra courses in Digital Urban History and Art History at EPFL and internationally. Her work in grants and projects emphasizes open data, reproducibility, and interdisciplinary collaboration. She has led research funded by organizations supporting digital heritage innovation.

She is a key member of the Digital Humanities Laboratory at EPFL and the Time Machine Organization, where she fosters collaboration between computer scientists, historians, and cultural institutions. Her work in the Replica Project and ARCHiVe center highlights her leadership in digitizing and making accessible large art historical archives.