Ilias Lalaounis

Ilias Lalaounis (4 October 1920 − 30 December 2013) was a pioneer of Greek jewelry and an internationally renowned goldsmith. He is especially known for his collections inspired by Greek history. In 1990 he became the only jeweler ever to be inducted into the Académie des Beaux-Arts. He was a fourth generation jeweler whose family originated from Delphi. The following year he organized an international exhibition of jewelry in Athens, joined by Van Cleef, Bulgari, Rene Kern and Harry Winston. In 1976, he had one of his most important commissions which would prove to be one of the most inspiring for his portfolio. Empress Farah of Iran commissioned Lalaounis to create a collection of jewelry and objects inspired by Persian art, which went on display at the Imperial Palace in Tehran.

Between 1970 and 1978 Ilias Lalaounis opened stores in most European countries. He opened his first international store in Paris at 364 rue Saint-Honoré, near Place Vendôme and produced a short film explaining the sources of inspiration for the jewels on display. Since then, he regularly produced short films to illustrate his collections, such as: Aube of Art, Byzantine Arcs in Gold, Choreography, The Shield of Achilles, Ilion - The Treasure of Troy, Art and Gold, The Common Roots of the Creator Man, Treasures of the Holy Land. The Academicians' swords (épées d'Académiciens), given to members on their induction, were originally designed by Salvador Dalí, and when Dalí became too frail to continue, he named his close friend Ilias Lalaounis to continue his work.

In November 1987, Lalaounis was invited by Teddy Kollek, Mayor of Jerusalem, to present his collection Treasures of the Holy Land, in an exhibition specially organized by the Israel Museum and subsequently shown in New York, London and Paris. The following year he presented Arabesques, a collection of gold and silver creations set with precious and semi-precious stones. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey invited him to exhibit Arabesques, as well as another complementary collection, Soleiman the Magnificent, at the Islamic Art Museum of Istanbul. He launched Ameridians in New York, a collection inspired by the art of North American Indians and in 1991, opened his store on Madison Avenue in New York, where he presented his collection inspired by Celtic art.

Museum In 1994, he founded the Ilias Lalaounis Jewelry Museum, located under the Acropolis, in the center of Athens. The permanent exhibition displays jewelry and micro-sculptures from forty-five collections, designed by Lalaounis in the period 1940–1992. Some special commissions are also kept on permanent display, such as the Olympic torch, designed by Ilias Lalaounis, used to start the Olympic torch rally before every Olympic Games.

Personal life He married Lila Altitzoglou in 1957. They had four daughters, Aikaterini, Demetra, Maria and Ioanna. Lalaounis died on December 30, 2013, in Athens, Greece. His daughters have taken over the administration of the firm.

He was a member of the Rotary Club of Athens.

Honors and awards 1986: Corresponding member of the Académie des Beaux-Arts of the Institut de France 1986: Grand Archon of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople 1988: Commander of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic 1990: Associate member of the Académie des Beaux-Arts of the Institut de France 1995: Knight of the Order of the Legion of Honor 1999: Medal of the City of Athens