Training in design in Germany is multifaceted and unique, unparalleled in Europe for breadth of range. The Goldsmithing and Watch-making School in Pforzheim provides a three-year college course in design, jewellery-making and tableware, which, since the school was founded in 1988, has earned it a deserved reputation as being state-of-the-art in training future makers of jewellery and tableware. Graduates are full-fledged designers examined by the state. The aim of the college is to teach assurance in handling material and form. The holistic approach to training here enables graduates to be equally successful in professions other than jewellery-making and tableware, indeed all professions in which, besides craftsmanship and technical skills, creativity and professionalism in dealing with form and design are required.

Here a highly creative pool of young, internationally oriented jewellery-designers is created, unleashing a potential which is bound to be much talked of in future. Mastery of traditional techniques, unself-conscious perspectives on prevailing styles and bold exploration of new possibilities for design are the hallmarks of tomorrow's jewellery and tableware. Twenty years of professional college training represent a welcome occasion for taking stock and looking back. Many successful designers have been "forged in this crucible"; their activities are shaping how we perceive a wide range of design-related fields.

Text in English and German.