Yvonne Elet

Yvonne Elet is a Professor of Art and History of Architecture at Vassar College, specializing in Renaissance/Baroque art and landscape design. She holds a B.S. in Computer Science from Yale University and M.A./Ph.D. in Art History from NYU's Institute of Fine Arts. Her research bridges early modern Italy and 20th-century American landscapes, focusing on integrated artistic and urban designs. Notable works include Architectural Invention in Renaissance Rome (2017) and Urban Landscape in the Third Rome (2023), which explores Fascist-era renovations of Villa Madama.

Her teaching covers Italian art from the 14th–17th centuries, Vassar's campus history, and interdisciplinary design. She directed the Reconsidering Raphael conference (2021) and co-edited its proceedings. Awards include the 2025 MacDougall Award for her 2023 book. Elet advises student projects on Olmsted's contributions to Vassar's landscape and maintains the Vassar Campus History digital archive.