“There is no decisive moment in my photograph,” the Japanese artist Hiroshi Sugimoto has said, “only the melting of time.” For over half a century, Sugimoto has shown viewers images of nature—seascapes, empty theaters, animals—that seem to exist outside of the instance in which they were shot. No easy feat, it requires Sugimoto to use a large-format camera, to mix his own darkroom chemicals, and to develop his gelatin black-and-white prints by hand. The outcome, however, is magical, condensing an entire world into one frame. The artist now has his first institutional solo exhibition in China. It surveys his career and includes renowned series such as “Seascapes,” “Theaters,” “Lighting Fields,” and “Portraits,” as well as a new series of calligraphic works. —Clara Molot