Why "Extracted from stone"?

"Extracted from stone" is a title which sums up the culture of the people of the Valmalenco. We were inspired by one of the protagonists of the film, a man who raised the stone of the Valmalenco to an art, even though he continued to call himself "a simple craftsman"... When you watch this film, you'll discover what it's all about!

We chose this title because, as we show in the video, it lends itself to various levels of interpretation.
‘Extracted’ are the men of the Valmalenco, who themselves appear to be moulded and to spring from the stone which makes their land.
‘Extracted’ is the stone in all its numerous varieties, which the men of the Valmalenco have been quarrying since time gone by.
‘Extracted’ are the innumerable products made from working the stone.
‘Extracted’ from the video are the stories told. A few of the many accounts, which could have been voiced when talking about the Valmalenco, its people and its stones.

A "delicate", "rocky" world

"Extracted from stone" simply suggests some of the most striking features of a social, economic and cultural identity, which is characteristic of the valley. It is a world in which each inhabitant of the Valmalenco and the communities as a whole lives and has lived, a world which, today as in the past, continues to determine the human and environmental history of the valley itself, a story of inevitable light and shade which, nevertheless, continues to mould its own destiny.
In the Valmalenco, the panorama of the different varieties of minerals and their respective professional sectors in which they are used and applied is so vast and multi-faceted, that it has been impossible to give a voice to them all simply for reasons of space. Therefore, we chose to give a few ‘Extracts’, which we thought were significant to document this varied "delicate", yet "rocky" world, with roots deep in its centuries-old, social, economic and productive traditions.

The film "Extracted from stone" will be available from October 2014.