Hiroshi Sugimoto - Research Paper Example

Hiroshi Sugimoto Hiroshi Sugimoto (1948- ) is a Japanese photographer. His minimalistic and realistic imagination, mastery of light and meditative understanding translated intangible phenomena in objective art forms. Time and light, serialization, documentary style imaging not only distinguished him from contemporary photographers but also made his work timeless. This paper studies Sugimoto’s Theater series, Seascapes series, wax figures series and Color of Shadows. According to Russell, Sugimoto has highlighted the ‘natural’ and integral role of emulation in the development of artistic and cultural traditions in Japan (15). Bruno tries to explain Sugimoto’s different fields and their interrelation. He states, “considered serially, the work offers an articulate drawing of film space, a map of its very origins” (51).Bruno establishes a relationship between movie theaters, dioramas, wax museums, and seascapes. From a cinematic perspective, seemingly different fields follow the same route. These are particular sites on proleptic trajectory that direct to invention of cinema. The interrelation among these depicts hybrid, spatial and archeology of cinema (52). Theaters Series Theaters series of images by the Hiroshi Sugimoto provides a strong historic view of filmic architectonics. These photographs are taken over a complete length of movie. His photographs lead us to an exploration of the house of pictures, introducing a genealogic blueprint for the movie theater as the house of the cine city (Burno 51). Sugimoto smartly used Warhol’s fixated modulation of light for the affected images. Interior of theater is photographed during the whole length of film that created single refined image (Vartanian).Bruno states: A panoramic tour of life anatomy, film takes us to an elsewhere “now here.”Sugimoto represents this voyage of film images even in the form of this photographic series. The photographer explores his subjects serially, looking into the images analytically and connecting them panoramically. Once related to one another in their endless variation, and to all the other series, the pictures articulate, almost literally, a film series. The dioramic seriality takes shape as a unique cinematic project. (51) Sugimoto’s theater series figure the geography of filmic architecture. He considers theaters to be the “light” architectures. Photograph “expose” the fleeting moments from emergence to passing. Only the white film screen is visible that is achieved by maintaining a balance between exposure time and length of film. “Reel” time sets up film’s real visual space and it is a spatial wisdom of time. From the interior architecture, there emerges a light that comes from screen. It results in an eyes movement on the surrounding environment of the theater. Then emerges movie house itself, from nothingness. It depicts that cinema is indeed a home of voyage and architecture of the interior describe it to be a whole experience (Bruno 52). Seascapes Series In Seascapes series, there is an inherent romanticism that prevails on the viewer. A series of black and white pictures that are horizontally divided seem to be abstract at first glance but gradually it appear to be horizon and ocean at different timings. Langford et al. state, “Hiroshi Sugimoto’s austere and highly refined presentation of landscape” (20).According to Burno, Sugimoto’s seascapes are framed in a particular way that makes it appear as a film screen. Seascape series portrays transitional stages of horizons. Particularly his seascapes and theater series is visualized as a rectangular architectonics, with careful light it emerges as a series of absorbing geometry projection (Burno 52). In the Seascapes series, Sugimoto goes beyond the traditional idea of time and reveals intangibility and transgression as its very nature. He suggests that time is floating between receptions and production while urge us to think time as event. The photographs are inclined to entertain the idea of bifurcation and indiscerniability that exist between actual and virtual of Deleuze’s crystal image. Sugimoto visualized the idea of crystal-image. Time plays with the opposites. In every photograph of this series, oscillation between change and inaction is clearly visible. It creates an atmosphere of free fleeting time and meditation that Sugimoto called “time exposed” (Wittmann). Time floats in a series of photographs that can be read as a movie that records all the moments simultaneously. Sugimoto give great importance to creation of myths, his personal romantic ideas and philosophy. He continuously works on the ideas of denotation and memories. He wants to show ocean as an origin of world .Memory that is associated with going back to the roots is another interpretation of Sugimoto’s images. Photograph captures a particular moment but Sugimoto’s interprets time as a duration that makes the viewer feel that it is still but moves at the same time (Wittmann). Wax Figure Series For Sugimoto, photography and painting are closely associated. He photographed Wax figures Henry VIII and court at Madame Tussauds by using the lightening techniques used by 16th century painters. The technique is used with such mastery that photograph itself seems to be the live painting made in 16th century. Hiroshi Sugimoto increases the complexity inherent in mediality in his photographs of waxed figures. The interaction between two media undermines the photography’s indexicality. Viewer expects to see some photographs of lifeless waxed bodies but Sugimoto’s expertise gave life to these ghostly wax figures (qtd. in Belting 7). We are either trapped by this confusion or invited to enjoy the ambiguous cross-reference. Ambiguity paradoxically helps to emphasize one medium on the evidence of another via a counter-reference. Sugimoto involuntarily also stresses a point made by Ronald Barthes. In a photograph, Barthes wrote, “I have become all-image, i.e. death in person”, and he added that this “micro-experience de la mort” was preceded by the long obsession with the double. (qtd. in Belting 7) Color of Shadows Sugimoto is known for his black and white images and his ability to transform anything into a visual feast. ‘Colors of Shadow’ was his foray into color and digital photography. Seemingly monochromatic images of this series depict the origin of art and points towards the new perspective of photographer’s eye. Like most of his work, Colors of shadow is also minimalistic and perspective on light is undoubtedly incredible (Vartanian). According to Vartanian, Sugimoto is known for the ability to transform the perspective on any subject he selects. Vartanian states, “He is poised to transform our notion of color photography more radically than his black-and-white images exploited the potential of the monochrome image”. ‘Colors of shadow’ proposes a back to basics theme due to the resemblance of photograph walls with Edward Weston’s peppers or Mapplethorpe’s calla lilies. Sugimoto’s technical potential is evident from the elemental aspects of this series that inspires the viewer to look again (Vartanian). Vartanian states, “The images have a soft luminosity marked by tonal gradation that kiss the edges in each photo and fuse sharp planes with undulating lines”. His special technique to focus the lens on a particular point in space gives an effect of soft and smooth edges that blurs more in foreground until the lines seem to appear as drawn with watercolor. Despite being in the same series, every piece has its own distinctive appearance. Sadness of Sugimoto’s photography is somewhat dispersed in this series. Like Andy Warhol’s oeuvre, Sugimoto reproducing images that are identical but it is not exact replication. Serialization highlights and differentiates each composition from the other (Vartanian). ‘Colors of Shadow’ much like Warhol series the ‘Shadow’ focus on dark and shady world of image that changes continuously. Both of them seemed at ease with projected forms, transient natures and vague meanings. However, Sugimoto’s shadows project a positive tone while Warhol’s mysterious ones (Vartanian). From black and white to color photography, Hiroshi Sugimoto’s photography gives a feeling of timelessness. His overwhelming success lies in the fact that he continuously pushes his boundaries and challenges himself for experimentation. Work cited Bruno, Giuliana. Atlas of emotions: Journeys in Art, architectures, and film. London, NY: Verso, 2002.Print. Belting, Hans. “Toward an Anthropology of the Image.” Clark Paper.docs.google.com.PDF file. Langford, Michael.et al.Langford’s Basic Photography: The guide for serious photographers.UK: Focal Press, 1965.Print. Russell, Ian. Images, Representations and Heritage: Moving beyond Modern approached to Archeology. New York: Springer Science+ Business Media, 2006.Print. Vartanian, Hrag. “Hiroshi Sugimoto: Colors of Shadow, Sonnabend Gallery.”The Brooklyn Rail: Critical perspective on arts, politics, and culture. Brooklynrail.org. Web.12 March 2010. Wittmann, Mirjam. “Time, Extended: Hiroshi Sugimoto with Gilles Deleuze.”Image & Narrative: Online Magazine of the visual narrative, 1.24(209):n.pag.Web.11 March 2010. Read More