LAQUA Vineyard | lamatilde

lamatilde has successfully carried out a new collaboration with Cinzia and Antonino Cannavacciuolo: after LAQUA Countryside in Ticciano, near Pisa, and the restyling of the Lake Orta Relais Villa Crespi, the Turin-based studio has designed the new LAQUA Vineyard, the fourth Resort in the LAQUA collection, located in the small town of Casanova, between Pisa and Volterra.

The LAQUA Vineyard project translates the Cannavacciuolo Group’s passion for hospitality into a new and welcoming Resort at the heart of Tuscany, overlooking the spectacular local vineyards from a town that originally was home to a theater.

Theater therefore is the core concept that brings the project to life: with careful renovation work in search of the ideal dialogue between ancient and contemporary, lamatilde completed the LAQUA Vineyard project by creating a stage for the perfect pairing of culinary art, oenology and passion for hospitality.

The studio’s work has led to opening the Cannavacciuolo Vineyard Restaurant, recently awarded 1 Michelin star, inside the Resort and restyling 6 suites which – in line with the other venues in the LAQUA collection – echo the concept of “home”.

In step with lamatilde’s philosophy, storytelling underlies every design decision: in this case, the narrative pays homage to the endless love story between food and wine. The visual identity designed by the studio indeed recalls this alliance and the real protagonists of the venue: a Rhinoceros for Cantina Vinicola La Spinetta, and the Moon, inspired by the golden buttons in the Cannavacciuolo logo.

Within the same building as the restaurant, there are also 6 suites – each one unique yet sharing the same pure lines and cozy and welcoming mood – for which the studio created a new style and storytelling. Each room has been given a name inspired by legendary love stories: Cupid, Aphrodite, Narcissus, Eurydice, Dionysus, Penelope. lamatilde worked on the existing spaces with graphics, color palettes and decorative objects in line with the overall concept.

The restaurant

The design approach followed by lamatilde for the Cannavacciuolo Vineyard Restaurant is based on constant interplay between contemporary elements and tradition, which is not hidden or surpassed but rather showcased and highlighted.

The walls, originally quite irregular, were lined up by installing custom furniture and faux walls, balancing the visual impact of the spatial layout.

The faux walls cover only part of the walls, vertically, leaving the original restored texture visible in the upper section. The design of the different surfaces reflects an approach meant to create dialogue between the language of contemporary expression and a strictly artisanal character, which form a powerful synthesis. The handmade exposed bricks – made in Etruscan black and velvet pink cotto – were layered following a stack bond, instead of the traditional stagger, thus enhancing what would usually be considered a design heterodoxy by all means.

The same approach was extended to the ceilings in the project, where both the regular arches and striking, classic personality of the restored lofts were harmonized by adding paneling with soft and fluid shapes, which enjoy a delicate relationship with the traditional ceilings – covering, unveiling, and always playing off each other’s strengths in the contrast.

For the ceiling panels, lamatilde chose golden hues that are able to reflect and diffuse the external light, giving the Restaurant a warmer and more striking atmosphere.

Indeed, the original space was rather dark because the building used to be a theater. For this reason, the studio came up with different elements to make the halls brighter. For example, the stage curtain-style draperies allow for different solutions to divide the space and for further flexibility in adjusting the light and the mood of the interior “scene”.

In addition, the only pre-existing window that offers a view of the spectacular vineyards and countryside outside is highlighted, creating a corridor with an accelerated perspective that amplifies visual convergence towards the exterior, adding depth to the space.

All the interiors clearly recall the theater’s environment. In particular, the two counters at the opposite ends of the main hall resemble two stages – one dedicated to culinary arts and one to wine: two visual focuses that provide clients and guests with their first bearings in this “scenic” space.