Jyothi Forman, who has been an apprentice at NSW-based Georgies Fine Jewellery since April 2012, was recently awarded second place in the 43rd WorldSkills event in Brazil.
She was selected to represent Australia as part of the ‘Skillaroos’ team after winning gold in the 2014 WorldSkills Australia national competition.
Competing against jewellers from 16 countries – including Brazil, Korea, the UK, Japan, Finland, France, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Indonesia and Russia – Forman was required to manufacture a brooch design using 18-carat gold.
Competing against jewellers from 16 countries – including Brazil, Korea, the UK, Japan, Finland, France, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Indonesia and Russia – Forman was required to manufacture a brooch design using 18-carat gold.
The piece had to be completed within 22 hours spanning four days, with jewellers needing to finish a certain part of the project – a ‘module’ – by the end of each day.
“The biggest challenge was working to such a tight time limit,” Forman commented. “I made very detailed job plans every day and followed them strictly to ensure I finished each module in time.”
Forman placed second – a mere three points behind gold medallist Leonardo Fonseca Rodrigues from Brazil.
“I was so excited and proud to win the silver medal,” she said. “I was competing against the best young jewellers in the world, which was a huge achievement in itself. My main goal was to do my best and be proud of the piece I made, which I achieved. Then to place second in the world was an awesome bonus.”
Forman described the biennial international competition – held this year from 11 to 16 August – as an “incredible, once-in-a-lifetime experience” from which she learned a great deal.
“Not only have I improved my skills, I have become more confident at work, improved my time management, use metal more efficiently and I can handle pressure better,” she explained.
The apprentice added that while she planned to enter more jewellery competitions in the future, her short-term focus was to further her skills in areas such as setting, engraving and gemmology.
Forman’s achievement comes after another Australian jeweller, Tayron Scagnetti, won silver at the 42nd WorldSkills international competition, which was held in Leipzig, Germany in 2013.
The WorldSkills event is organised by WorldSkills International and is said to be the largest of its kind. It aims to promote the importance of professional education for a wide range of vocations such as jewellery manufacturing, architectural stonemasonry, carpentry and graphic design technology.
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