Genius at work: close-up

'Adelchi' desk in gold-plated brushed steel, £30,305, limited edition of 100, by Armani Casa. Photograph by Paul Zak

Clockwise from top, Black gloss notebook, £75, from William & Son. Tea cup and saucer, part of the ‘Black Basalt Tea Set’ collection, £110, by Wedgwood, from Harrods. ‘Sirius’ ball, £1,800, by Baccarat. ‘Half scissor’ paperknife, £27.50, by ATYPYK, from Paperchase. XS hard drive, £100, by Sylvain Willenz, for Freecom. ‘Encre Noire Pour Elle’ perfume, limited edition, £615 for 60ml, by Lalique, from Harrods. Photograph by Dominic Bell

'Cubo Libre' unfolding desk with integral chair, €8,900, by Francèsc Rifé, for Artelano. Photograph by Paul Zak

From left, ‘Pencil colours’, £60, box of 36, by Düller, from Present & Correct. Water pitcher, €94, by Lobmeyr, from Gallery Fumi. ‘Elementaire’ silver tray, €150, by Christofle. ‘Falling in love’ light, €248, by Tobius Grau. Photograph by Dominic Bell

'Vernon 14' desk, £3,532, by Matt Elton, for ME Design. Photograph by Paul Zak

From left, ‘Standards’ rulers, £40 each, by Louise Naunton Morgan. ’Perforated Calendar’, £17, by Harrington and Squires. Flat metal letter opener, £15, Paperchase. Mixed tapes, $14, by Kamoi Kakoshi Co, from The Shop at Cooper-Hewitt. Photograph by Dominic Bell

'HS2-PR' desk, from £1,295, by Peter Lassen, for Montana, from Aram. Photograph by Paul Zak

From left, ‘Production for Graphic Designers’, £23, by Alan Pipes (Laurence King). 'Natural' calendar, NTD.318, £7, by Agua Design. 'Tanto' headphones, €40, from Urbanears. Photograph by Dominic Bell

'Spoon' table, £871, by Antonio Citterio, for Kartell, from The Conran Shop. Photograph by Paul Zak

From left, ‘Jetz black’ lamp, €310, by Axel Schmid, for Ingo Maurer. Patterned tapes, $18, by Kamoi, from The Shop at Cooper-Hewitt. A5 watercolour book, £13, by Moleskine, from Paperchase. Photograph by Dominic Bell

Desk, €3,200, by Jörg Schellmann, for Schellman Furniture. Photograph by Paul Zak

Clockwise from top, stationary blocks: small, €17; medium, €21; large, €24, all by D.Lab, for Design Incubation Centre, from National University of Singapore. Urban picnic box, £6, from UP Box. ‘Anything’ scissors, £26, by Michael Sodeau and Suikosha, from Twentytwentyone. ‘Bank’ pen, £13, from Mar Mar Co. Headphones, DKK375 (€50), from Ai Ai Ai. Photograph by Dominic Bell