The Italian artist Gehard Demetz employs the traditional craftsmanship of woodcarving to create a completely unique and contemporary language within the field of sculpture.

In his first solo exhibition at Beck & Eggeling's he concentrates on questioning the frequently contradictory cultural values which characterise contemporary society. How specific values are pursued and lived is in this case of lesser interest then the way people let themselves be corrupted by them or the way in which they are exploited until eventually a loss of these same values appears unavoidable. The props he chooses to give his current child figures are taken from religion – for moral values – and economics – for material ones –.

Several of these props are containers. Yet »contenitore« are also a metaphor for the children themselves. According to the artist, children can be seen as a kind of container, because of their capacity to absorb or contain certain contents – contents which can be taken out again at a later time. In a similar way, children, in their zeal and fervour to discover the world, assimilate everything they experience with their five senses and spurt it out again without any prejudice and, according to the situation, with charm, humour, stubbornness or defiance.