Edoardo Villa: Conversation with a sculptor

Abstract

The University of Pretoria was recently the fortunate recipient of a bequest made by one of South Africa's most well known and acclaimed sculptors, Edoardo Villa. The bequest includes several of the artist's large works, many smaller works, numerous maquettes, as well as his personal archives, library, awards and photographic records. Though the bulk of the work is still in the artist's studio and garden, twelve smaller pieces are in Pretoria already, giving an idea of what is still to come, and six large sculptures have been delivered and placed on campus, eliciting a mixed response from the student body as well as staff. Although the general level of visual literacy among the South African public is very low, the appearance of several new sculptures on campus has stimulated a lively debate.