The Seductive Laqua Vineyard Resort Stuns in Tuscany, and Other News

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The Seductive Laqua Vineyard Resort Stuns in Tuscany

With its rolling hills and intoxicating vigneto, the sunbathed Tuscan hamlet of Borgo di Casanova would seduce even without its invocation of the famed lothario. Cannavacciuolo Group’s Laqua Vineyard resort is the area’s newest paramour, and it’s irresistible: six intimate suites designed by Torino’s Lamatilde take their names from amorous Greek figures including Cupid and Aphrodite, and their inspiration from a theater that once stood on the property. 

A spa offers massage treatments with local grape-seed oil. And the scene-stealing main hall is clad in bricks of Etruscan black and velvet pink cotto, nodding to the brick-making traditions in the area. At one end, a counter sets the stage for tasting the region’s beloved wine, while the other offers the tasting menus that almost instantly earned chef Marco Suriano a Michelin star. One bite of the Pici in black kale sauce with almond and lemon—or a beguiling dessert of cauliflower, coffee, and pine nut—is more than enough to fall in love. —Jesse Dorris

OMA will renovate Turin’s Museo Egizio, the world’s oldest museum of Ancient Egypt. 

Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA) has won the competition to renovate Turin’s Museo Egizio, the world’s oldest museum for Ancient Egyptian culture, whose public spaces had long been closed off to the rest of the city. The proposal, a collaboration with local architects Andrea Tabocchini Architecture, T-Studio, and historical consultant Professor Andrea Longhi, seeks to open up the museum by creating a covered courtyard and a series of six connected rooms within. “This approach restores coherence to the architecture and lends the museum a lucid identity while ensuring the institution’s new needs are fulfilled,” OMA project architect Andreas Karavanas said in a statement. 

The FDA is seeking more regulatory authority over CBD products derived from hemp.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has said it lacks the power to regulate hemp-derived CBD products, and has called on Congress to give it a stronger regulatory framework. In a statement, Dr. Janet Woodcock, the FDA’s principal deputy commissioner, said the agency’s existing methods governing the sale of food additives and dietary supplements were inappropriate for CBD products, and that some research suggested long-term use might be associated with liver toxicity and damage to men’s reproductive systems. Industry groups expressed disappointment with the decision, saying they worried the matter could languish in a closely divided Congress, despite bipartisan support for an industry that grew to nearly $6 billion in the four years since lawmakers removed hemp from the federal list of controlled substances.

Arkansas Tech University students decry an artwork on campus they’ve called racist.

An exhibition at Arkansas Tech University was the subject of controversy when students labeled an artwork racist. The piece, called Klan Bride (2023), featured an arcing figure wearing a Klan hood; the school’s African American Student Association (AASA) said the work “perpetuates racist narratives through harmful symbols.” Following a planned protest, the artist, Dominique Simmons, took the work down. AASA president Jace Bridges regarded removal as a victory but noted the university hasn’t issued an apology. PEN America, a nonprofit promoting freedom of expression, called the school’s response unsatisfactory. “We hope the artist won’t be deterred in her work and that the university will take this opportunity to facilitate conversation about it and the response it elicited,” Kristen Shahverdian, a senior manager of the nonprofit’s Free Expression and Education program, told ARTnews. 

Swiss tennis star Roger Federer secretly modeled for a Ugo Rondinone work in Venice.

Roger Federer, the Swiss tennis star and 20-time Grand Slam winner, secretly modeled for sculptor Ugo Rondinone’s piece for the “burn shine fly” exhibition at the Scuola Grande San Giovanni Evangelista church during the Venice Biennale. Federer stripped to his underwear for the physically challenging sessions, which required him to be suspended in a harness and have his face covered in casting material. He was excited by the experience, calling it “something exciting that throws you into another world.” A new documentary, Portrait of a Champion, produced by NBCUniversal and Credit Suisse, captures Federer’s journey from professional tennis player to secret art model.

Gucci has appointed Valentino designer Sabato De Sarno as its new creative director.

Gucci has appointed Sabato De Sarno as its new creative director. The move by Kering, Gucci’s parent company, will see De Sarno, a close associate of Valentino designer Pierpaolo Piccioli, present his first collection at Milan Fashion Week in September. De Sarno’s appointment can be viewed as part of Kering’s strategy to elevate behind-the-scenes figures to lead its flagship brand. Gucci has been under pressure to fill the creative vacancy after its previous creative director, Alessandro Michele, departed this past November. According to Gucci CEO Marco Bizzarri, De Sarno has “a distinctive vision that will help write this exciting next chapter, reinforcing the house’s fashion authority while capitalizing on its rich heritage.” 

Nike files a trademark infringement lawsuit against Japanese streetwear brand BAPE.

Nike has filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against Japanese streetwear brand A Bathing Ape (BAPE) in a New York court. The court filings reflect 20 years of tension between the two companies, with the American sportswear giant claiming BAPE’s footwear business revolves around copying Nike’s designs. The suit alleges that BAPE’s copying of Nike’s designs is “unacceptable” and “a significant danger to Nike’s rights.” It marks the second trademark infringement claim in Manhattan’s Southern District Court this month, after Adidas recently lost its lawsuit against Surface cover star Thom Browne. 

Today’s attractive distractions:

Aspiring actors can live in the cheap Rehearsal Club—but only if you audition.

Tiktok’s emergent “corecore” movement bears some similarities to Dadaism.

Now there’s a way to adopt real-life dogs from their Decentraland avatars.

New York Public Library acquires the archive of Joan Didion and her husband.