Welcome...
...to our Studio Website and Online Store.
Why not take some time out to discover the diversity and beauty of traditional wood carving from South Tyrol? Here you will find unique and individual gifts, carefully crafted and carved to your own individual requirements, or why not just browse through the extensive selection featured in our online store? Delve into the fascinating world of crafts and learn all about our tradition and history at the same time.
The Artist:
Your sculptor is Roman Grasser Gerst, a native of Partschins. It was in 1997 that he first opened the doors of his studio and business premises in Naturns in the Vinschgau region. This young artist sets attaches great importance not just to modern, secular art but also to to ancient religious art and tradition. Roman trained in the traditional stronghold of woodcarving: in Val Gardena. There he attended art school for five years, specialising in wood sculpture. He followed this up with a three-year course in his chosen specialisation. Besides producing work for churches or chapels in South Tyrol, Germany (Allgäu, Sonthofen, Nuremberg), Italy (Trento, Bormio Cavalese, Sardinia Costa Smeralda), Australia and the USA (Schaumburg, IL, Vancouver), this young artist has also displayed at exhibitions in South Tyrol (Meran), Italy (Este, Piacenza), Germany (Leipzig), Austria (Carinthia Weissensee) and Switzerland (St. Moritz).
An "Ave Maria" for Pope Benedict XVI:
In the early summer of 2008, three musicians from South Tyrol set themselves the ambitious task of composing a "Hail Mary" in honour of Pope Benedict XVI.
The melody originates from the pen of Marco Diana (Schlanders), while the Italian and Latin libretto was written by Johann Innerhofer (Tscherms) and Karl Heinz Gamper (Naturno).
It proved possible to recruit the powerful Slovakian tenor Jaroslaw Dvorsky for the resulting "Ave Maria per Pace", who has performed at many international opera houses.
The world premiere of "Ave Maria per Pace" was performed on 5th June 2008 before an audience of senior clergy and honoured guests, as part of a solemn Mass in the Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica.
Variety and Selection:
Custom Made with trademark and “hand-made” certificate:
- Family Crests
- Professional figurines showing the customer’s own facial features
- Photograph-based Portraits
- Reliefs
- Signs
- Outdoor Crosses
- Expert restoration and appraisal of antique sculptures
- Copies and Duplicates
- Matching gifts for special occasions: Baptisms, First Communions, Confirmations, Weddings, Birthdays and Name Days, Anniversaries
- And much more ...
In the Online Store:
- Cribs and Christmas Decorations
- Saints, Madonnas, Religious Motifs, Angels
- Patron Saints with documentation about their life, times and
works
- Decorations, Watches, Zodiac Signs, etc.
- Secular figures of all kinds: animals, clowns, morris dancers, children's characters, collectable characters, Chess, and more...
Our Philosophy:
The line between tradition and modernity
"For me, it is important to explain to people how a figure takes shape: what processes and how many processes are needed and what designs are possible. I always like to cater to customers’ individual needs. Besides that, the highest possible work quality is my greatest concern. For me, being a Sculptor means showing great respect for the awesome raw material that is wood and also creating pieces that give pleasure and survive beyond our times.“
Roman Gerstgrasser