MB&F and Caran d’Arche’s Crazy, Cool Collab Goes Ape: The GorillaSharpener
Image © MB&F
The Tailor
MB&F and Caran d’Arche’s Crazy, Cool Collab Goes Ape: The GorillaSharpener
While the GorillaSharpener, made to help fundraise for the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, is a cheeky objet d’art, it is also a fully functional pencil sharpener formed like a great ape.
As you probably know, MB&F is primarily known, of course, for its Horological Machine wristwatches, a.k.a. kinetic artworks for the wrist.
Its founder, Max Büsser, is also the force behind the M.A.D. Galleries in Geneva and Dubai – two spaces that showcase MB&F’s wristwatches and co-creations alongside carefully curated design objects.
Meanwhile, Caran d’Ache is an art supply legend, famous for making everything from crayon boxes for schoolchildren to luxury writing instruments.
These three players collaborated before on the rocket ship-shaped Astrograph writing instrument in 2016.
Now this super trio has reunited to celebrate M.A.D. Gallery’s 15th anniversary and World Gorilla Day with a wild new objet d’art: the GorillaSharpener, a fully functional Caran d’Ache pencil sharpener in the form of the greatest of apes.
Color Me M.A.D.
For Büsser, Caran d’Ache is synonymous with a Swiss childhood. The company, founded in 1915, is most famous for its colored pencils. To help unleash creativity, one must keep these crayons sharp. And in 1933, the Caran d’Ache Sharpening Machine became a fixture of Swiss classrooms.
Max Büsser was a child in one of those classrooms. (Is it any wonder then that MB&F’s cri de couer is, “A creative adult is a child who survived.”)
MB&F’s creative designer Maximilian Maertens was most likely a daydreamer too. To mark MB&F’s 20th anniversary in 2025, the Maertens worked with Caran d’Ache to release a take on this legendary crank-operated tool called the DinoSharpener, an imaginary, biomechanical dinosaur.
We can also imagine MB&F’s creative designer Maximilian Maertens as a young lad sketching in class, envisioning the utilitarian hand-cranked object as the trunk of a gorilla knuckle-walking across his desk.
I’d had the idea for the GorillaSharpener for quite some time. Gorillas are fascinating animals – one of those animals you probably don’t want to encounter unexpectedly in nature. There was also another connection in my mind: our earlier DinoSharpener reminded me of Godzilla, and Godzilla needs a counterpart. Which is, of course, King Kong.
MB&F’s creative designer Maximilian Maertens
Gorillas Not on the Wrist
In reality, the GorillaSharpener began as a series of 2D sketches capturing the animal’s distinctive locomotion, before being transformed into a 3D artwork. Maertens then worked through the technical process of molding and construction to make the great ape’s stance possible.
You see, unlike Caran d’Ache’s traditional Sharpening Machines, which are made to rest flat on a surface, the GorillaSharpener’s stance is based on the quadruped’s fearsome stance, with its stainless steel and cast-iron hands and feet planted firmly on any surface. To keep it stable as a table, it also comes with a clamp to secure it while you crank it.
Finished in “Alpine Frost” blue, the GorillaSharpener combines zinc alloy, steel, and chrome-plated mechanical components. Each piece is delivered in a special case, complete with an instruction booklet and a set of Caran d’Ache wooden pencils, all presented in special packaging featuring artwork by Maxime Schertenleib, another regular MB&F collaborator.
Since MB&F stands for Max Büsser and Friends, it should be noted that the GorillaSharpener has another partner: the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund.
Founded in 1967 by famed primatologist Dian Fossey, this organization is the world’s largest and longest-running group dedicated to gorilla conservation in the world. Through this partnership, MB&F will be supporting the Fossey Fund’s daily work of studying and protecting endangered mountain gorillas and their habitats.
Pricing & Availability
The GorillaSharpener, priced at CHF 850.00 + VAT, is a limited edition of 300 pieces, available exclusively through the MB&F eShop, M.A.D. Galleries, MB&F LABs, and the MB&F Lounge in New York.
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