Edoardo Daniele Villa (1915–2011) was a notable[1] South African sculptor of Italian descent who worked primarily in steel, and bronze.

Zonderwater was opened in February 1941 and by the end of 1942 and held 63 000 prisoners under the care of Colonel H.F. Prinsloo whose head was later sculpted in bronze by Villa for the military museum.

Villa gave an interview in which he said, “After being a prisoner of war in South Africa I decided to stay and start my career because of the opportunities available for the youth, the ‘open space’ as opposed to the ‘closed’ life of a continental.

In 1961, along with Cecil Skotnes, Cecily Sash, Giuseppe Cattaneo, and Sydney Kumalo, Villa made up the artist group “Amadlozi” (Zulu for “ancestors”) for the conscious appropriation of African sculptural traditions.

[citation needed] He has exhibited in over a hundred shows in Italy, Europe, England, Israel, South America, Africa and the United States.

[7] Villa lived and worked at his home in Johannesburg, He was a friend of the artist and art collector, Vittorino Meneghelli,[8] the author Jillian Becker and the architect Monty Sack.