Patricia Urquiola's tranquil Italian retreat By ALIA AKKAM Photography by PATRICIA PARINEJAD Celebrities have long loved escaping to Lake Como and its princely villas ogled from vintage wooden boats. Amid the centuries-old classic structures dominating this northern Italian retreat in the foothills of the Alps, Il Sereno Lago di Como is a contemporary contrast, a 30-room hotel showcasing an understated grid-form façade that melds the beautiful landscape with interiors from Milan-based Patricia Urquiola. Il Sereno, the latest addition to the Sereno Hotels collection-which includes the Villa Pliniana (within walking distance) and Le Sereno Hotel & Villas in St. Barts- is adjacent to the village of Torno and stretches along the lake's eastern shore. lake 1. Set on idyllic Lake Como, Patricia Urquiola left the stone dock in place from the former hotel, outfitting the five-story grid-form Il Sereno with vertical gardens that reference the architecture of Giuseppe Terragni. hospitalitydesign.com May 2017 295http://www.hospitalitydesign.com