W. J. T. Mitchell is known for his books on the theory of images across the media, including Iconology (1986), Picture Theory (1994), What Do Pictures Want? (2005), and Image Science (2012). His 40-year editorship at Critical Inquiry featured special issues on race, gender and sexuality, comics and media, the politics of interpretation, and historic debates about the stakes of critical theory in the humanities and social sciences. His latest book is Mental Traveler: A Father, a Son, and a Journey through Schizophrenia (2020). He is the Gaylord Donnelley Distinguished Professor in the Departments English Language and Literature, Art History, and Cinema and Media Studies and in the College at the University of Chicago as well as the Senior Editor of Critical Inquiry.