Chiarenza, Carl. Landscapes of the Mind by Carl Chiarenza. Signed.

David R.Godine, 1988. Introduction by Estelle Jussim. First edition. ISBN 0-87923-724-4. [Large, high quality reproduction monograph with extensive portfolio (1958-1986) and biographical information in appendices.] Hardcover with protected dust jacket. Fine/Near Fine. SIGNED by Chiarenza. Summary:

Published by David R. Godine in 1988, Landscapes of the Mind is Carl Chiarenza’s first major monograph, collecting nearly 100 images spanning three decades from 1958 to 1986. Featuring a preface by Chiarenza, an introduction by art historian Estelle Jussim, and an afterword by Charles W. Millard, the book documents Chiarenza's transition from early outdoor photographs to his studio-constructed abstract collages.

The monograph explores Chiarenza's rejection of traditional, representational landscape photography. Driven by the idea that external reality is an insufficient framework for inner experience, Chiarenza constructs "landscapes" using scrap paper, aluminum foil, and discarded materials. Through dramatic chiaroscuro and rich black-and-white tonal variations, these physical assemblies are transformed into intimate, high-contrast visual events that reflect the interior workings of the mind, memory, and emotion rather than specific physical places.

Carl Chiarenza (1935–2026) was an American art photographer, art historian, and educator recognized for his pioneering contributions to abstract studio photography. Born in Rochester, New York, Chiarenza studied under influential figures Minor White and Ralph Hattersley at the Rochester Institute of Technology. He went on to earn a Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1973—becoming one of the first scholars in the United States to complete a doctoral dissertation dedicated to the history of photography. Alongside a long academic career as a professor and department chair at Boston University and the University of Rochester, Chiarenza shifted his photographic practice entirely to the studio in 1979. There, he pioneered a unique technique of assembling abstract collages from scrap paper, aluminum foil, and discarded materials, capturing them in high-contrast black-and-white to transform ephemeral assemblies into luminous photographic prints. Following a career that fundamentally reframed photography as an expressive abstract medium, Chiarenza passed away in May 2026, leaving behind work held in major permanent collections worldwide, including the Museum of Modern Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the George Eastman Museum.