Sea of Japan, Hokkaido I, 1988

Gelatin silver print
x1988-121
Sea of Japan, Hokkaido I

Interpretation

Theater stages and seascapes are the subjects of two of Sugimoto’s most iconic series, each of which balances a tightly focused picture with a composition bordering on geometric abstraction. Sugimoto made these series using a large-format camera that captures details in high resolution, yet he also created each exposure over a period of hours— during the full run of the movie or a voyage out to sea. Each photograph thus records the movement of light over time, merging all the details of that period. By eliminating the expected dramatic subject of the scene, Sugimoto’s pictures open the narrative possibilities to the viewer’s imagination.

Information

Title
Sea of Japan, Hokkaido I
Object Number
x1988-121
Maker
Hiroshi Sugimoto 杉本博司
Medium
Gelatin silver print
Dates
1988
Dimensions
image: 41.8 × 54.3 cm (16 7/16 × 21 3/8 in.) frame: 65.5 × 83.4 × 3.8 cm (25 13/16 × 32 13/16 × 1 1/2 in.)
Credit Line
Museum purchase, gift of Robert Gambee, Class of 1964, and the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation
Culture
Japanese
Place depicted
Asia, Japan, Sea of Japan from Hokkaido
Type
Techniques

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