In a career of 50 years, Hiroshi Sugimoto, born 1948, has worked to quietly and purposefully refute the idea that photography is a second-class citizen in the world of art. Although known as a photographic artist, Sugimoto is a polymath with interests in science, history, philosophy, theatre, architecture and landscape design. He has been a dealer in high-end antiquities and a notable collector.
Viewed as a conceptual artist, he sees himself primarily as a craftsman. “Concept follows craftsmanship” is one of his mottos. Sugimoto’s masterpiece is not a photograph at all but the Enoura Observatory, which opened in 2017.
Set in the Hakone mountains, overlooking Sagami Bay, it is a mix of new buildings and fragments of ancient ones surrounded by citrus trees. Visitors are invited to stroll around the grounds, taking in the views and the forest. Enoura is a total work of art, a place for observing the solstice, for connecting with nature and the legacy of Japan’s medieval period.
It’s also an exercise in applied metaphysics, a meditation on life and death. The show at the Museum of Contemporary Art, which claims to be the most comprehensive overview of Sugimoto’s oeuvre yet attempted, is aptly titled If there is one subject that features in each of the artist’s diverse series, it is time. He is prepared to take us back to the dawn of consciousness and forward to thoughts of our own mortality.
Sugimoto has investigated ways of slowing down the photographic process, wi.