DC Museumgoer

The cicadas are in full voice outside my window, which means it’s almost time for my annual trip to Block Island, RI — 25 years and counting.

For me, it’s the most relaxing place on earth. I watch my nieces and nephews play in the surf, look out at the Atlantic and feel my urban-induced urge to keep moving fall away.

This year, I channeled the New England coast early, while gazing at Hiroshi Sugimoto’s Seascapes series, part of the Fragments in Time and Space exhibit at the Hirshhorn.

Sugimoto’s series of horizon lines–some crystal clear, others hazy as wet cotton–are presented in a darkened room, following the outer arc of the museum’s walls as if following the curve of the earth. The composition and quality of light vary so much from one photo to the next, you’re forced to consider each as a separate chapter in the photographer’s life. Where was he? What was he thinking? Was he satisfied with life?

I’d never seen the series before, but it’s got legions of fans. After Googling around, I discovered that U2 appropriated one of Sugimoto’s Seascapes for the cover if its 2009 release, “No Line on the Horizon,” and there’s a Flickr pool called “Seascapes After Sugimoto,” which has some impressive imitations.

I found Seascapes stunning, and I didn’t want to leave the room. There’s something about the balance of sea and sky–never changing and never the same. It’s as true off the New England coast as it is off Ha Long Bay.

Fragments in Time and Space continues through August 28, 2011, at the Hirshhorn.