Leda Cempellin

Dr. Leda Cempellin is a tenured full professor at the School of Design, South Dakota State University (SDSU). She holds a Laurea in Lettere Moderne from the University of Padua (1999) and a Ph.D. in Art History from the University of Parma (2004). Since 2005, she has been based in the U.S., focusing on interdisciplinary art historical research and innovative pedagogy. Her work bridges late modernism, photorealism, and the cultural contexts of art, with notable contributions to the study of Daniel Spoerri and American Photorealism’s reception in Germany.

Education:

• Laurea in Lettere Moderne, University of Padua, Italy (1999)
• Ph.D. in Art History, University of Parma, Italy (2004)
• Exchange Student, University of California Santa Barbara (1998)

Research interests include late modernist art, interdisciplinary methodologies, and the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) in art history. She pioneered SoTL contributions in art history, publishing in journals like Art History Pedagogy and Practice. Her monograph on Daniel Spoerri (2017) received acclaim for its focus on collaborative artistic processes, and she was awarded SDSU’s Outstanding Research in the Humanities Award (2020).

Service and Leadership:

• Member/Chair of College Art Association committees since 2013
• Coordinator of SDSU’s Museum Studies Minor (2015–present)

Teaching and Mentoring: She teaches art history courses and mentors undergraduate researchers, guiding students toward awards and publications. Her pedagogical innovations emphasize interdisciplinary collaboration and student-centered learning.

Labs/Teams: Collaborates with institutions like the South Dakota Art Museum, the Swiss National Library, and the Spoerri Archives. Active in archival research and cross-disciplinary projects with museums and academic libraries.