“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. “Time Machine” was Sugimoto’s first institutional solo exhibition in China, and it now comes to Sydney. The exhibition 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