Yellow Sea, Cheju (Primary Title)
Hiroshi Sugimoto, Japanese, born 1948 (Artist)
Every time I view the sea, I feel a calming sense of security, as if visiting my ancestral home; I embark on a voyage of seeing. –Hiroshi Sugimoto
Since the early 1970s, when Sugimoto left Japan for the United States, he has kept his subjects to a small number. In series of closely related images of movie theaters, seascapes, wax museums, and natural history dioramas, he explores the fine line between the real and unreal, the visible and invisible.
Light is often the primary vehicle for these explorations. Here a sharp horizon line bisects the scene. Haunting in its simplicity, the image reflects the abstract, elemental format adopted in each of the hundreds of photographs that make up Sugimoto’s sea images, taken around the world at all times of day and night and under various atmospheric conditions.
[1] Accessioned on December 19, 1996. See VMFA Curatorial file.
Some object records are not complete and do not reflect VMFA's full and current knowledge. VMFA makes routine updates as records are reviewed and enhanced.