Elena Votsi (Greek: Έλενα Βότση; born 1964 on

Hydra island Hydra, or Ydra or Idra (; , ), and in antiquity Hydrea, is one of the Saronic Islands of Greece, located in the Aegean Sea between the Myrtoan Sea and the Argolic Gulf. It is separated from the Peloponnese by a narrow strip of water. In anci ...

Kingdom of Greece The Kingdom of Greece (, Romanization, romanized: ''Vasíleion tis Elládos'', pronounced ) was the Greece, Greek Nation state, nation-state established in 1832 and was the successor state to the First Hellenic Republic. It was internationally ...

) is a Greek jewelry designer. Votsi completed a degree at the School of Fine Arts in

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

in painting, followed by a master's degree at the

Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public university, public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City, London, White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design uni ...

in London in jewelry. In 2003, she won the competition to redesign the

Summer Olympic Games The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The 1896 Summer Olympics, inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, ...

medal for the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based i ...

, the first time the medal had been changed since 1928. The International Olympic Committee adopted Votsi's design for all future Summer Olympic Games medals. Her handmade 18-karat gold ring with diamonds won the 2009 Couture Design Award in the category "Best in the New-to-Couture," a category for first-time exhibitors at the Las Vegas show.

References

External links

*
Olympic Museum page
on Athens 2004 medals

in International Jewellery Living people 1964 births 20th-century Greek women artists 20th-century Greek artists 21st-century Greek women artists 21st-century Greek artists Alumni of the Royal College of Art Greek jewelry designers Greek designers People from Hydra (island) {{designer-stub