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Lot Essay
Thomas Demand views the world from media based eyes; traditional photography as we understand it is thwarted and altered. Grass, interiors, blinds, barns, balconies, stables, sinks, escalators, and hedges all become paper and cardboard, and our perceptions of what these items traditionally represent are questioned.
Demand's early artistic journey sought a medium that was accessible and immediately recognizable. Eventually his search led him to paper. He began by using the material to make sculptures, but quickly found that he did not have the space to store these pieces, so he began taking pictures of them and thus only this documentation remained. Photographing these sculptures forced Demand to view these works in a different light. Soon the artist had to adapt the physical construction of the works, making them life-size paper and cardboard models. He also was forced to adapt his method of taking pictures so the pieces themselves would read more clearly.
Later is his career Demand turned his interest towards the political world in Podium. Two dates loom large in this image; a lectern with microphones and a glass of water are depicted below. This sterile environment, seemingly untouched by a human presence represents the location where Serbian dictator Slobadon Milosevic gave a speech on the occasion of the 600th anniversary of the Serbian defeat by the Turks.
Highly charged interiors are usually the focus of Demand's work as he searches the Internet, newspapers and his own memory for source material. The results of his attention are photographs of reduced and abstracted shapes that are at once sculptural and cinemagraphic.
Demand's early artistic journey sought a medium that was accessible and immediately recognizable. Eventually his search led him to paper. He began by using the material to make sculptures, but quickly found that he did not have the space to store these pieces, so he began taking pictures of them and thus only this documentation remained. Photographing these sculptures forced Demand to view these works in a different light. Soon the artist had to adapt the physical construction of the works, making them life-size paper and cardboard models. He also was forced to adapt his method of taking pictures so the pieces themselves would read more clearly.
Later is his career Demand turned his interest towards the political world in Podium. Two dates loom large in this image; a lectern with microphones and a glass of water are depicted below. This sterile environment, seemingly untouched by a human presence represents the location where Serbian dictator Slobadon Milosevic gave a speech on the occasion of the 600th anniversary of the Serbian defeat by the Turks.
Highly charged interiors are usually the focus of Demand's work as he searches the Internet, newspapers and his own memory for source material. The results of his attention are photographs of reduced and abstracted shapes that are at once sculptural and cinemagraphic.