'Born in Hong Kong but educated in the US, [Paul Chan] has established himself in recent years as an important New York artist. In the wake of 9/11 and the war in Iraq Paul Chan has become a key figure both in the American art world and in the world of political activism. He is also an artist who emphasizes what is specific of these two spheres.' - excerpt from Prologue by David Neuman

On view at Magasin 3 is Chan's ongoing series The 7 Lights, a digital animation of fleeting shadows projected on the ground. Sunglasses, cars, people—everything is falling against a background in shifting colours. Also showcased in the exhibition is the video animation Happiness (Finally) After 35,000 Years of Civilization (After Henry Darger and Charles Fourier), 2000-2003. The story is a dramatisation of how we could achieve a better world, based on the ideas of the utopian socialist thinker Charles Fourier (1772-1837), which Chan has illustrated with imagery inspired by the eccentric Henry Darger (1892-1973). Paul Chan says that he has animated this in a way he believes Darger would have worked if he had been alive today and had access to the internet and knowledge about contemporary art and photography.

The present catalogue includes artist biography and essays by Daniel Birnbaum and Elisabeth Millqvist.