On what would have been his 100th birthday, the house where sculptor Edoardo Villa lived and worked for more than half a century in Kew, Johannesburg, was unveiled, beautifully restored. Through a remarkable arrangement between the Edoardo Villa Trust and private owners, the house has been preserved and its legacy will live on.Villa, as Professor Karel Nel noted in his speech on the occasion of his centenary, was probably the most important South African sculptor of the 20th century. He died at the age of 95 in 2011, and Nel is one of the trustees of his estate. They approached art collector, dealer and consultant Warren Siebrits and his wife Lunetta Bartz in 2013 with the aim of "preserving Edoardo and Claire Villa's legacy", as Siebrits recalls Nel putting it.They bought the house last year and have meticulously restored it. Siebrits announced that he and Bartz would establish a sculpture park at the house and start a residency programme for sculptors.Villa lived on the property from 1949, initially in a cottage at the bottom of the garden. He bought it a decade later, and in 1968 commissioned his friend, architect Ian McLennan, to design a new house. The original house became Villa's studio, which has remained untouched in the restoration.The house itself is an architectural marvel.During Villa's lifetime, the garden was filled with sculptures, some 6m high.Siebrits and Bartz have acquired a dozen more Villa sculptures, and works by other notable artists are already dotted about.Visits can be booked: 011-327-0000 or enquiries@warrensiebrits.co.za..