About Greg A. Chianis

Born in 1961 to a university professor father and elementary school teacher mother, Greg A. Chianis, AIA has been design
ing and building projects of all shapes and sizes for people since he was fifteen years old.  At a time when most kids his age were playing Little League, Chianis was helping neighbors re-build retaining walls or renovating houses for family friends.  After completing his secondary education in 1980 at Maine Endwell High School in Endwell, New York, he turned his attention to the field of architecture to formally continue his love of design and construction.

Upon graduation in 1986 from the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Science degree in Architectural Engineering, Chianis was well prepared for his return to New York and the beginning of his new career.  In 1993, he satisfied the rigorous requirements to become a licensed architect and in 2001, Mr. Chianis co-founded the firm Chianis + Anderson Architects, a twenty person firm, with offices in Binghamton, New York.  Now licensed in five states, his professional career has focused on the design and creation of meaningful Healthcare facilities and welcoming places for healing.  

The initial connection with photography as an art form has a strange and unique origin.  His intense passion for photography began shortly after a painful three-year long treatment process for Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma cancer, which concluded in 2010.  The battle with this life threatening disease changed his life forever, and he soon realized that every minute of life mattered.  Following the lengthy treatment, a mysterious inner voice suggested he pick up a camera and photographically document the world around him.  In a strange, yet uniquely positive way, his illness had heightened his awareness of the surrounding environment, the places and things he came in contact with, and most importantly the way he looked at life.  Photography not only became a passion, but a daily way of life.  From his home in Newark Valley, New York, Mr. Chianis has travelled extensively to many parts of Europe and throughout the United States to capture the natural landscape and unique and intriguing manmade objects.

Having no formal training or photographic education, Mr. Chianis is self-taught from trial and error. In addition to his work with digital media, Mr. Chianis has developed a deep interest and curiosity in analog film photography that includes the use of the pinhole, 35mm, medium format, and large format cameras and equipment.  He has custom designed and constructed a professional darkroom laboratory to serve as a venue for his experimentation with the film medium.  He is honored to have had his work selected for display in many of the buildings that he has designed under his professional role as project architect.  His imagery can also be found in a variety of commercial environments and individual private collections.  In addition to these permanent installations, he has held several solo exhibitions that have focused on various themes and special interest projects.  He has also participated in numerous group shows with fellow photographers and other fine artists.  Over his short tenure with the photographic art form, he has been fortunate to be the recipient of several awards and has won many notable regional photographic competitions. Most recently, he was retained to teach a three credit hour class entitled Digital Photographic Imaging at SUNY Broome Community College in Binghamton, New York where he serves as an Adjunct Instructor.  Mr. Chianis resides in Newark Valley, New York and has one young adult daughter Madelyn.