Biography

Andrea Cagnetti – known as Akelo (from "Acheloo", Greek waters divinity) – is an Italian sculptor, designer and goldsmith.

Several publications, reviews, and TV show feature Akelo, emphasizing not only his talent and originality, but also the value of his researches, which are today subject of studies in Art Institutes.

Akelo was born in 1967 in Corchiano (Viterbo), a village built over the ancient ruins of the Etruscan city of Fescennia, where the Etruscan people culture is still alive. As a child, he was bright up to appreciate art and beauty. As a young man he started his spiritual path and research, wanting to explore the maze of ancient though, through alchemical and esoteric readings and exhausting metallurgical experimentations.

The Artist defines himself an “ancient soul”, a Renaissance man living in the 21st century, with existential rules based on the mantra "pray, read, read, read, re-read, work and you will find", (from the book Mutus Liber), in the belief that, only through deep passion, discipline and real motivation can one achieve inner elevation and such a level of excellence.

Akelo's works – unique in their kind, of inestimable value and technically inimitable – appear only in some periods of history and seem to take part in the endless evolution of civilization, such as precious pieces in a jigsaw where past, present and future come in a fluid, linear sequence. They, in-fact, treasure both ancient values and knowledge, and a contemporary identity which is the expression of the Artists visionary view. He, in short, "draws on" the past to "create" the present in a continued projection towards the Absolute.

Andrea Cagnetti works are shown in national and international exhibitions and, in recent years, some of them have been acquired by important Museums and private collections. Her Majesty The Queen Consort Camilla Parker-Bowles, wears "Garnet Star" a necklace by Akelo