Unrau, Don. Don Unrau: Vietnam - War Stories and Meditations. August 26 - October 23, 1994.

Robert B. Menschel Photography Gallery No. 37, Syracuse University, 1994. Wraps, 24 pages. Essay by Jeffrey Hoone with 19 black-and-white photographs, some with reproduction of hand-written comments by Don Unrau portrait subjects. [Unrau is a U.S. Army veteran of the Viet Nam War who has made several postwar trip to Vietnam  to photograph.  His books of Vietnam photos include Spring Visits: Photographs from Viet Nam (2009), Hanoi Street Work (2012), and The Revolutionary Moment (2013).  [Note: some booksellers erroneously list this publication as Light Work's Contact Sheet 37.  Although there is a Light Work connection, The Menschel Gallery has its own numbered series of exhibition catalogs.] Summary:

Don Unrau: Vietnam — War Stories and Meditations (August 26 – October 23, 1994) is a slim, 24-page exhibition catalog published by the Robert B. Menschel Photography Gallery at Syracuse University. Issued as Number 37 in the gallery's respected Contact Sheet publication series, this oblong octavo booklet documents a pivotal mid-career exhibition by photographer and former U.S. Army combat medic Don Unrau.

The publication serves as a powerful artistic bridge, charting Unrau's personal journey from the lingering, unresolved trauma of his fellow American veterans to his first, peaceful return to the landscapes of Vietnam.

The Dual Structural Focus

The catalog presents 19 high-quality black-and-white plates (tonally rich silver gelatin reproductions) organized into two distinct, deeply personal conceptual frameworks:

1. War Stories: The Veteran Portraits (1984–1989)

A major portion of the catalog showcases photographs from Unrau’s foundational project, War Story, which he developed over five years and finalized during an artist residency at Syracuse's Light Work center in 1989.

• Collaborative Text and Image: These entries consist of striking, direct portraits of Vietnam veterans. Crucially, Unrau invited each subject to handwrite an unedited statement of any length directly into the negative margins beneath their image.

• The Raw Psychology: The writings—ranging from brief maxims and poems to raw, heartbreaking treatises on anger, confusion, and survival—individualize the soldiers' emotions. Unrau notes that these portraits allowed viewers to look past military stereotypes, while serving as a proxy to help him articulate his own post-war psychological burdens.

2. Meditations: Returning to the Landscape (Post-1992)

The catalog documents a massive artistic shift triggered by Unrau's first journey back to Vietnam in 1992—his first time standing on Vietnamese soil since the war.

• The Healing Landscape: Moving past portraits of human trauma, the Meditations plates focus on the quietude and daily rhythm of the modern Vietnamese environment. Unrau trains his camera on the serene geography, small villages, and the everyday bustle of places like Hanoi.

• Overwriting the Battlefield: By capturing a country at peace, the photography consciously aims to overwrite the chaotic, violent visual memories of jungles and combat with an appreciation for the land’s enduring resilience and humanity.

Significance

Don Unrau: Vietnam — War Stories and Meditations is a scarce and highly prized ledger of therapeutic and documentary photography. By binding his searing 1980s veteran portrait series alongside his peaceful 1990s travel landscapes under the Syracuse University banner, the catalog traces an entire trajectory of personal and cultural healing—proving how the camera can be used to navigate the painful history of war and ultimately discover a path toward reconciliation.

Two copies available. 

• Very good with two neatly retouched scratches on black cover. 
• Another copy, near fine.