Many the called upon, few the elect

摘要

In the play the Infernal Machine by Jean Cocteau, the god Anubis reminds the Sphinx that "logic compels us to reveal ourselves to mankind in the shape which they imagine us; otherwise they would see only void". And lo and behold, as if in a mirage, Venice appears before my eyes and the mind loses all sense of travel, in mending the strands of memory that speak of vileness and heroism, of wrong-doing and splendour. The crowd of tourists at the station brings me back to reality, reminding me I am on my way to the Economic Pacakging Conference, organized by the Istituto Italiano Imballaggio in cooperation with Conai. Curious, I turn my attention to the meeting, resolving to attempting to understand the motivations underlying the time to come, for packaging producers and users; hence again I find myself dealing with new impressions, evident signs of vitality, that continuously drive you to make new attempts.