Riehm, Bernd. Melancholisches Italien (Melancholic italy) by Bernd Riehm.

V V (Verlagsgruppe Vis-A-Vis), Berlin, Germany, 1988, Text by Dacia Maraini in German.  Large illustrated wraps, 72 pages, near fine with black-and-white photos of people, architecture, and scenes, most or all in Venice, by Riehm, who was born in 1962. 

Bernd Riehm (born 1962) is a contemporary German fine-art photographer and photojournalist best known for his atmospheric, moody urban landscape studies and documentary coverage of European architectural environments. Emerging during the late 20th century in Berlin, Riehm developed a visual approach centered on high-contrast, black-and-white analog silver-gelatin printing, often exploring themes of quietude, urban isolation, and spatial memory. He achieved international notice within photographic literature through his landmark 1988 monograph, Melancholisches Italien(Melancholy Italy), published in collaboration with acclaimed Italian author Dacia Maraini. The volume received critical attention for its starkly depopulated streetscapes, architectural geometry, and nuanced portrayal of everyday Italian life away from conventional tourist perspectives. Beyond his published monographs, Riehm's editorial and architectural documentary work has appeared in major European publications, illustrating cultural heritage topics and urban transformations across Germany and Southern Europe.

Melancholisches Italien (Melancholic Italy, 1989) is a fine-art monochrome photobook by German photographer Bernd Riehm, published by Edition Cantz.

Overview & Subject

• Setting & Focus: The book presents a quiet, introspective journey across various regions of Italy—including Venice, Rome, Tuscany, and the southern coasts—far removed from typical tourist imagery.

• Format: The collection gathers black-and-white photographs taken throughout the 1980s, focusing on architectural details, quiet urban squares, deserted landscapes, and weathered structures.

Key Themes & Artistic Style

1. Atmospheric Melancholy: Riehm avoids vibrant resort crowds and sunny postcard vistas, choosing instead to capture Italy during off-peak seasons, overcast days, and quiet hours. The imagery evokes a sense of nostalgia, solitude, and timelessness.

2. Interplay of Light and Architecture: Utilizing high-contrast black-and-white tones, the photographs emphasize classical archways, shadows stretching across empty piazzas, crumbling facades, and statues veiled in mist or shade.

3. Poetic Meditation on History: Melancholisches Italien treats the Italian landscape as a layered ruin of history, reflecting on the passage of time, decay, and the quiet persistence of classical beauty amidst modernity.