Demetra Theofanous Demetra Theofanous has been immersed in the arts from a very young age, starting with violin lessons at the age of 4.  With the addition of piano, ballet, and theater as she grew older, her exploration of creative mediums grew. This thirst for expression was temporarily diverted, when she received her business degree from the Haas School of Business, at UC Berkeley.  After some years as a tax consultant and CPA, she began to pursue her Masters in Tax, to open a private practice.  It was then that she realized there was something missing in her work, and had a desire to return to her roots. After years making jewelry and dabbling in design as a hobby, she began to morph her off-work activities into a new venture.  With that, came the birth of Elements by Design….her vision of a creative platform for her work, which would transition what was once a hobby, into a new career. Demetra first entered the medium of glass, through the art of lampworking: the hand-made creation of glass beads, from their molten state to their final solid form. It quickly became a passion for her, and enabled her to not only design jewelry, but make the beads that went into her designs. Many of her sketches, however, needed translation on a larger scale.  This led to her interest in off-hand glass blowing, and the start of her hand-blown bowl series.  It also fueled her curiosity in glass sculpture. In the summer of 2006, she had the enviable opportunity to apprentice for a nationally recognized flame worker, Kathleen Elliot.  Kathleen Elliot's botanical sculptures allowed Demetra to view glass art from yet another perspective.  This opportunity opened Demetra's eyes to her ability to merge her torch work skills with those from off-hand glass blowing, to create glass sculpture behind the torch.  At the close of her apprenticeship, Kathleen Elliot hired her on as a full time assistant and production employee.  Demetra now makes all of the leaves and branches that Kathleen incorporates into her botanical sculptures.  This immersion in glass, and the ability to experience it on different levels, has given rise to Demetra's signature work, currently in development.