ART HOUSE

Philanthropist Patrizia Sandretto Re Rebaudengo has made it her life's work to champion avant garde art - much of it showcased in her stunning Turin villa

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Built in 1901, Patrizia Sandretto Re Rebaudengo's Turin villa is delectably pretty, all art nouveau flourishes and aristocratic charm. But nobody could describe this as a place where time has stood still. As soon as you step over the threshold you see that the ornate wrapping contains a surprise; an open, luminous, gallery-like space, the ideal showcase for a breathtaking selection of contemporary art.

As a major collector, patron and philanthropist, Patrizia wields so much influence in the art world that she's been compared to the late, iconic Peggy Guggenheim. She and her husband, aristocrat and business tycoon Agostino Re Rebaudengo, have devotedly supported artists for three decades through their own foundation, while Patrizia sits on the councils of international institutions from New York's MoMA to London's Tate Modern.

Her gorgeous home first caught her eye when she was just a child cycling around the neighbourhood. Back then it belonged to the family of supermodel, singer and France’s former First Lady Carla Bruni, who spent her own earliest years there. But in 2000 Patrizia was finally able to add it to her “collection”, when her father presented it to her as a gift.

Together, she and Agostino have turned the villa into the elegant centre of their creative sphere. “I see hosting as an act of sharing,” Patrizia tells us, revealing that she treats their many guests to an ever-changing kaleidoscope of art, where rising stars dazzle alongside big names such as Cindy Sherman, Damien Hirst and Anish Kapoor.

Patrizia, what first drew you to this house?