For the seventh edition of the SMACH Biennale, we have chosen a Ladin term that refers to an object: the ‘cu’. It’s a stone used to sharpen the scythe to cut the grass in the meadows. The ‘cu’ speaks of materiality; imagination; craftsmanship; technical evolution; the universality of forms and basic needs; and tools found all over the world.In the alpine pastures and meadows of Val Badia, there are still a few people who mow by hand, sharpening their blades with the whetstone. Together with Paolo Vinati, a documentary filmmaker and ethnomusicologist, we interviewed some of them.