Hiroshi Sugimoto: In Praise of Shadows

Long before the advent of Photoshop and digital retouching, Hiroshi Sugimoto had discovered the potential of photography to serve as a work of fiction, rather than an accurate representation of reality. In his 'Dioramas' series, he photographed museum dioramas in such a way that they might easily be mistaken for the real thing – a trick that he would repeat with waxwork figures in 'Portraits'. For 'In Praise of Shadows', which takes its name from an essay by novelist Junichiro Tanizaki, Sugimoto observed the 'lives' of candles, letting his camera capture the slowly burning light over several hours. The result is a mysterious series of shots – one that continues at the CNAC Wall café and bar next door from the gallery.