Norman Foster wished for a bespoke pencil sharpener. He commissioned Norie Matsumoto to create a ‘pencil sharpener for three sizes capable of sitting on a desk and with a compartment to receive the shavings.’ Such a sharpener would ultimately allow him to sharpen all different sizes of pencil – a necessity in the life of an architect. Foster’s ‘wish’ expanded into a family of pencil sharpeners for his different desks. ’For as long as I can remember the pencil and I have been inseparable companions – sketching and scribbling are integral to my way of life,’  he said.