Both Jewellery Studio was established in 2020 by George Giannoutsos and Vasia Pachi, two designers sharing life and a common passion for contemporary jewellery. Their individual careers had followed parallel paths since 2012, crossing at times as the two collaborated in the context of art exhibitions and commercial events, converging finally on a shared venue that would house their evolving creative and professional lives.
Their individual practices, though different in style, reflect a set of common values such as a profound appreciation of man and nature, a focus on genuineness and honesty and a love of simplicity and aesthetic symmetry. They aim to stretch the boundaries of traditional jewellery-making and make contemporary design part of the everyday experience of Greek audiences.
Vasia Pachi’s geometric, highly architectural jewellery uses stainless steel and sheets of coloured acrylic, a combination of media which serves to underline their industrial aesthetics. They are marked for their clean lines and streamlined forms, their sheer energy and innovative design.
George Giannoutsos’ work taps into a variety of organic and geometric forms. The plasticity of his designs is coupled with the pronounced earthly feel of his materials to evoke a sense of intimacy and subtleness. His unconventional use of semi-precious stones, either as fragments inlaid in silver or as idiosyncratic tiles set together in miniature mosaics reminiscent of terrazzo floors, is especially engaging. These techniques are the result of a long experimentation with different materials, itself one of the artist’s favourite practices.
Their small shop-cum-studio at the foot of the Acropolis was designed by the two of them to be efficient and comfortable and at the same time combine the industrial and natural materials used in their work. The studio features furniture designed and built from scratch by George and Vasia themselves or using former shop window décor which they have remodelled, a practice which is consistent with their belief in promoting sustainability through reuse.
At Both Jewellery Studio the process of jewellery design and construction is seen through all its different stages from the initial concept to the finished product. This is true not only of George and Vasia’s own collections, but also of individual commissions.
Vasia Pachi and George Giannoutsos also collaborate with various other retailers, including the art shop of the Pireos Benaki Museum.
Vasia Pachi was born and raised in Lamia. She is a graduate of the School of Architectural Engineering of the National Technical University of Athens. She has attended jewelry and sculpture classes at the Dimitris Mytaras Art Workshop. Since 2010 she has been involved in the design and manufacture of jewelry, transferring the principles of architecture and sculpture to a smaller scale. Participates in jewelry exhibitions in Greece and abroad.
2021
- Project Piato. Benaki Museum, Athens, Greece
2020
- Street View. Popeye Loves Olive Art Space/ Athens Jewellery Week, Athens, Greece
2019
- Project Bala. Benaki Museum, Athens, Greece
- Popeye Loves Olive @ Munich Jewellery Week, Munich, Germany
- Α-ύλη (group exhibition with Ragtag collective), Ilias Lalaounis Jewellery Museum, Athens, Greece
2018
- Ragtag Collective @ Huit De Coeur, Paris, France
2016
- Misery Loves Jewellery. (group exhibition with Ragtag collective) Matalou at Home/ Athens Jewellery Week. Athens, Greece
- Perivallonta. (group exhibition with Ragtag collective) Eleni Marneri Gallery. Athens,Greece
2015
- Jewelry Boundless. Innovation Park of Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology. Beijing, China
- Joya Barcelona Art Jewellery Fair. Arts Santa Monica. Barcelona, Spain
- Architectural Jewels. Studio Fusion Gallery. London, U.K.
- 6000 Fragments. The Floating Islands. Popeye Loves Olive Art Gallery. Athens, Greece
- Impressions. The Permanent. Alliages Art Gallery. Lille, France
- Your Dreamy Eyes. Actus Contemporary Art Gallery. Athens, Greece
2014
- Selected. Alma Contemporary Art Gallery. Trikala, Greece
- Joya Barcelona Art Jewellery Fair. Arts Santa Monica. Barcelona, Spain
GEORGE GIANNOUTSOS
George Giannoutsos was born in 1982 in Athens. His education includes Physics at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and training on various musical instruments over the years. His training in goldsmithing began in 2012 with Maria Tsimpiskaki, art and contemporary jewellery artist.
He starts the profession of contemporary jewellery designer and maker as a means of communication, experimenting with innovative materials and applying his personal techniques in his work.
Education – seminars
- Visual Arts in Vakalo Art and Design College.
- Sculptural construction with Constantinos Papadoukas in Vakalo Art and Design College.
- Sculpture classes with Rena Griva – Karachaliou and Giorgos Karachalios in Chalkis school of art.
- “An-isoropies” workshop with Andronikos Sagianos in the goldsmithing school of Stemnitsa.
- “Corpóreo in Corpóreo” workshop with Jorge Manilla in Popeye Loves Olive – Art Space.
- “Developing your own script” seminar with Charon Kransen in Popeye Loves Olive – Art Space.
- Japanese alloys and Patination seminar with Pr. Kimiaki Kageyama in Alchimia Contemporary Jewellery School.
- Creative jewellery design and concept classes with Akis Goumas (art jewellery artist and teacher).
Group exhibitions – shows
2021
- Project Piato. Benaki Museum, Athens, Greece
2020
- Street View. Popeye Loves Olive Art Space/ Athens Jewellery Week, Athens, Greece
- A-Ω Jewellery trade show, Athens, Greece.
2019
- Project Bala. Benaki Museum, Athens, Greece
- Popeye Loves Olive @ Munich Jewellery Week, Munich, Germany
- Α-ύλη (group exhibition with Ragtag collective), Ilias Lalaounis Jewellery Museum, Athens, Greece
- A-Ω Jewellery trade show, Athens, Greece.
2018
- – Autor 2018, Bucharest, Romania.
– 50/50’ CHEAPART Artists and Designers in Dialogue, Thessaloniki International Exhibition & Congress Centre, Greece.
– New Jewellery, Ilias Lalaounis Jewelry Museum, Athens, Greece.
– Ragtag collective exhibition, Huit de coeur gallery, Paris, France.
– A-Ω Jewellery trade show, Athens, Greece.
2017
- A-Ω Jewellery trade show, Athens, Greece.
2016
- Alliages legacy award during Joya Barcelona Art Jewellery Fair, Barcelona, Spain.
- Jewelry loves misery with Ragtag collective, Athens Jewelry week 2016.
- Environments with Ragtag collective, El. Marneri Gallery, Athens, Greece.
- Unclasped, Helenic Museum, Melbourne, Australia.
- Alliages: The legacy collection, Melting point 2016, Valencia, Spain.
- A-Ω Jewellery trade show, Athens, Greece.
2015
- Empreintes 2015 – The Permanent Alliages Art Gallery, Lille, France.
- Inhorgenta Jewellery trade show, Munich, Germany.
- Memories inside jewellery Gallery “Samona”, Padova, Italy.
- The After Joya Effect II Popeye Loves Olive – Art Space, Athens, Greece.
- Joya Barcelona Art Jewellery Fair, Barcelona, Spain.
- Alliages 2015 Award, Barcelona, Spain.
2014
- Joya Barcelona Art Jewellery Fair, Barcelona, Spain.
- Sieraad Art Jewellery Fair, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
- Selected ALMA Contemporary Art Gallery, Trikala, Greece.
- 1st Christmas Designer Weekend Popeye Loves Olive – Art Space, Athens, Greece.
- The Parallel worlds Alliages Art Gallery, Lille, France.