Galleria Franco Noero is proud to present Henrik Håkansson's second solo show. The dramatic effect of the works of the Swedish artist stems from the simple observation of Nature. Henrik Håkansson employs illusionistic devices in his work which sometimes give the spectator the impression of magnifying the surrounding space. The perception of the human scale is thus altered and reduced to the dimensions of the smaller natural world, so that it is easier to observe and perceive the wonders of Nature, and a hidden, forgotten side of Beauty. On the other hand, he adopts the most technological means to perform his investigations: videocameras, closed circuit television, microphones, lighting systems, amplifiers and microscopes to amplify sight, sound and perception and even to recreate phenomena which would otherwise go unnoticed. The projects that the artist has prepared for the Turin show duly depict two fundamental aspects of his research in great detail: Orchid (instrumental) is a long branch of a tree horizontally suspended, covered with a multitude of orchids and lit by a High pressure Sodium light. The light and humidifiers, are used to reassamble the natural world. This work therefore represents an attempt by Håkansson to recreate a world, albeit small, and to translate a dream with absolutely startling, surreal effects. The installation, flanked by a series of photographs documenting the research lead by the artist, comes out of a body of works identified by Håkansson as Fragmented Forest Projects which includes works as After Forever (ever all), The Thin Line between love and hate and In Every Dream-House an Heartache. The obsessive observation of a bird and it's behaviour are the investigation area of Tales from a Forest without a name. The film is part of the project The Birds, together with the Bali Myna, project recently exhibited at Secession, Wien, through which Håkansson detects bird species behaviour known to be less than 100 individuals as full population. The film, mounted in 'loop' and projected in 16 mm, is the portrait of a Gurney's Pitta. The sequence was taken and elaborated in Khao Nor Chuchi, in the South of Thailand on February 9th this year. A few photographs and maps illustrating the distribution of the Gurney's Pitta, complete the first part of this work in progress. Born in 1968 in Helsingborg, Sweden, Henrik Håkansson lives and works between the South of Sweden and Berlin. His work has previously appeared in a number of solo and group shows both in Europe and abroad. Among them his recent solo shows at Secession, Wien, 2002; 'The Tunnel', Galerie Yvon Lambert, Paris, 2001- 2002. The group exhibitions: 'Power of Art', Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art, Kobe, 2002; 'Ecovention', The Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati, OH, 2002; 'Berlin Biennale', Berlin, 2001.