‘Art Attack’ host to teach at Averett

Averett University has announced that local art historian Lee Sandstead will bring his own style of teaching art history to the school when he joins its faculty in the fall.

Sandstead, who lives in South Boston and hosted the Emmy-nominated “Art Attack” on The Travel Channel, will teach art history and computer art at Averett.

“This is a great opportunity,” Sandstead said in a statement. “I wasn’t raised with art and didn’t discover it until my early ’20s. Now, it is one of the greatest joys of my life to introduce students to art.”

For his show “Art Attack,” Sandstead traveled to the nation’s museums, introducing viewers to “must-see” artwork. The show was nominated for a Daytime Emmy in technical editing. The awards will be announced in August. 

“This is a wonderful opportunity for our students to study with one of the most exciting figures in the art world,” said Steve Ausband, Averett vice president for academic affairs, in a statement. “As Lee shares his knowledge of art, his passion for the subject is contagious. He is a great addition to our already strong art department.”

Sandstead has studied art history in the University of Memphis’ graduate program, and most recently, in the art-history doctoral program at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. Sandstead taught art history at Montclair State University from 2001 to 2007.

Sandstead has been a featured speaker at more than 50 institutions, including Harvard, Yale and The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Also a photographer, Sandstead’s pictures have been published in “The New York Times,” “Fortune” and others.