The Japanese photographer Yoshiki Hase might be called an “installation photographer” for his enigmatic images of man-made objects juxtaposed against the natural landscape. As the artist explains, “By placing objects into these physical spaces, the onlooker intermittently experiences peculiar instances of visual harmony.” His recent 181° series of photographs articulates this viewpoint. The name derives from the fact that usually 180° represents the horizon free from obstacles. Adding one object to the landscape decidedly changes the onlooker’s visual perspective. The geometry of space is altered, the line between nature and art is blurred. The result may or may not be “visual harmony” as Hase claims, but the effect is arresting and thought-provoking in the way abstract art is.









