German photographer Thomas Demand (b. 1964) is one of the most highly acclaimed artists of his generation. Like many of his contemporaries, his work investigates the nature and process of photography while exploring the role of the media in our culture.

Demand begins his process with images of highly charged locations, usually interiors. He obtains these images from a variety of sources, including newspapers, the Internet, and even his own memory. Demand then builds life-size paper and cardboard models of these places, which in turn become the "subjects" of his large-scale photographs. While the artificiality of these images may not be immediately apparent, upon detailed examination, one can see that details are missing (like light switches), and everything has a hint of peculiarity. In describing his work, Demand has said,