Robert Koch Gallery presents an exhibition of works by Japanese photographer Yamamoto Masao, featuring selections from his series A Box of Ku, Nakazora, Kawa=Flow, Bonsai, and Tomasu. Yamamoto's pictures are grounded in Zen philosophy, seeking beauty in everyday life and the moments we often overlook. His practice centers on the belief that meditation and careful observation reveal the extraordinary within the ordinary.

Working in small format toned silver gelatin prints, Yamamoto photographs the natural world around him: landscapes, plants, animals, and the subtle details of rural Japan and beyond. What appears subtle at first glance, conceals an otherworldly magic in Yamamoto's image making that compels a deeper look. Some of his photographs are hand colored or deliberately weathered through controlled creasing and surface treatments, a process that evokes the passage of time and personal intimacy. Animals appear throughout Yamamoto’s work with a subtle presence, sometimes meeting the viewer’s gaze. They inhabit his photographs as more than anthropomorphic subjects, bridging the physical and the spiritual while adding a surreal dimension to the intimate worlds he creates and offering reverence for the natural world we inhabit.