Giovanni Chiaramonte on His Journey Through Photography and the Legacy of Luigi Ghirri

In an interview with Artribune, photographer Giovanni Chiaramonte (b. 1948) reflects on his career, his close collaboration with Luigi Ghirri, and the landmark 1984 project "Viaggio in Italia." Chiaramonte, who studied philosophy at Università Cattolica di Milano under Gianfranco Bettetini, began photographing in 1970 during a trip to southeastern Sicily. He met Ghirri in 1973 at Il Diaframma gallery in Milan and soon developed a deep artistic bond. Together with Ghirri, Gianni Leone, and Enzo Velati, Chiaramonte contributed to the conception of "Viaggio in Italia," a survey of Italian landscape photography. In 1978, he co-founded the publishing cooperative Punto e Virgola with Ghirri, which published Ghirri's "Kodachrome" and other works. Chiaramonte curated the 1981 exhibition "Italy through the Camera's Eye" for the Fondazione Agnelli, first shown in Chicago. He published "Immagini della fotografia europea contemporanea" in 1983 with Jaca Book, highlighting Italian photographers such as Ventura, Jodice, Barbieri, Cresci, Ghirri, Guidi, Rozzo, Leone, Castella, Basilico, and himself. His own book "Giardini e paesaggi" appeared in 1983. Chiaramonte's work often explores themes of faith, place, and the ontology of photography, influenced by thinkers like Martin Heidegger and Minor White. He continues to publish and curate, recently releasing "Ultima Sicilia" with Postcart.