In 1973, art found itself at the forefront of a cultural shift. The United States military had just pulled out of Vietnam after nearly two decades and midcentury optimism had given way to uncertainty. Art, even when created for mass appeal, took on a darker tone.

A new wave of art—films like Chinatown and The Exorcist, albums like Bob Marley’s Natty Dread and Pink Floy's The Dark Side of the Moon—shined a light on a broken system and gave us the tools to understand it. Leonard Cohen once said “There is a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in.” Art creates cracks in the world’s darkest places, letting in the light of knowledge.

Fifty years later, the Blackwing 2 acknowledges art’s role in bringing about change. Each pencil features a cracked glow-in-the-dark design that plays on the duality of art and the challenging realities that inspire it. Each pencil contains their firmest graphite yet—a special 2X firm graphite formulated specially for this release.

Set of 12

Claimed by some to be the best pencil in the world, Blackwings are famous for the quality of graphite, iconic shape, replaceable eraser, and the people whose works they’ve inspired throughout the years.