for creative freedom. In other words, the work you do on the computer is what you do for work, to pay the rent, whereas the stuff you do with your pencil is the stuff you do for fun. Apart from stimulating the worlds most important creative minds, the pencil has become the modern creatives ultimate fetish. This book presents a unique collection of close-up pictures of pencils from some of our foremost artists, designers, writers, architects and musicians. What makes these pictures compelling is the fact that they somehow reflect the creative personalities of their owners: Philippe Starcks is a stylish black and red, Paul Smiths is a classic jewel-like thing worth £3,000 (a present from Jonathan Ive), William Boyds is nicely aged and rusty, while Anish Kapoors is sculpted into a mini ArcelorMittal Orbital tower. The pictures are complemented by material such as sketches, quotes and brief interviews, giving a further insight into the workings of these great creative minds.