What does it mean to truly feel at home? Is it the familiarity of faces, the ritual of a morning coffee crafted just the way you like it, or the feeling of sunlight on your skin?
As the winner of the inaugural Belmond Photographic Residency in 2024, photographer Cecy Young spent two weeks at Castello di Casole in Tuscany tasked with distilling the essence of ‘home’ through her lens. Known for her cultural nuance, humour and humanity, Cecy’s style was a perfect match for the property – capturing life’s quieter moments with a sense of stillness, joy and nostalgia that defies any specific era.
Originally a medieval castle rising from ancient Etruscan soil, Castello di Casole is now a hotel where time slows down and guests are welcomed like family. Rose-scented fields, lush vineyards, glowing sunsets and that unmistakable Tuscan sun – it all comes together in a place guided by the seasons and nourished by homegrown abundance.
Tucked within the ancient village of Querceto, Castello di Casole is steeped in centuries of noble stories. During the 1950s, Italian director Luchino Visconti made it his seasonal sanctuary, entertaining Hollywood luminaries with his distinctive Tuscan glamour. Today, as part of Belmond, it remains not only a luxurious retreat but also a working agricultural estate committed to sustainability, with a strong focus on local craftsmanship and organic farming.
To weave in this history through her lens, Young turned her focus to stolen moments of village life – morning dew gathering on a leaf, unhurried breakfasts, golden-hour naps in nature – each image evoking moments of pause and play. From the infinity pool overlooking the Tuscan hills to the vineyards via a breakfast table laden with fine china and delicate pastries, her lens on the locale is both vibrant and serene. She didn’t stage scenes; instead she observed, letting sensation rather than story guide her lens, following light, texture and atmosphere in search of fleeting moments that happen naturally at the hotel.
Through Cecy Young’s eyes, Castello di Casole becomes a gentle reminder that home can be found wherever we allow ourselves to slow down, breathe deeply and savour life’s simplest moments. Discover it for yourself and write your own story among Tuscany’s timeless hills.
