The Two Pages sketchbooks have travelled the world, and will restore your faith in creativity

It’s Nice That: Where did Two Pages all begin? And why did you want to do it?

Konstantinos Trichas: It all started in 2012. Dionysis and I had just moved to London from Athens, and we were really excited to dive into the London design scene. But it also felt overwhelming, as we didn’t have many connections and weren’t sure how to navigate it. I had my first freelance gig at Telefonica, which involved a two-and-a-half-hour commute from East London each way! That’s where I met a brilliant Spanish designer, Genis Carreras. One day, I got a new Moleskine, wrote the question “What did you do yesterday?” on the first page, did a quick illustration, and handed it to Genis to fill out the next spread. When he was done, I asked him to choose the next participant. That was the start of it all – just a simple experiment to meet other creatives and explore the London design scene.

KT (continued): Choosing the first person or team is the hardest yet most exciting part. I do a lot of online research to find original and inspiring voices in that location. The first participant carries a lot of weight because they set the tone for the entire book. We look for people who can inspire and motivate others to join in.

The themes for each sketchbook are usually very open-ended. We started with questions like “Where is home?” or “What’s the plan?” and then moved to single words like “Yes,” “Challenge,” and “Please.” We’ve experimented with images as themes – like a photo of the stars, a shipping container, or a cassette tape – before incorporating objects attached to the sketchbook, such as a ruler, an emergency blanket, or a one-pound coin. More recently, we’ve used action-based themes like “Dancing,” “Screaming,” or “Dreaming.” These themes are intentionally vague and serve more as triggers or starting points rather than strict directives.

INT: Why do you think people have reacted so emphatically? What is it about the brief, and sketchbooks generally, that are so inspiring and fascinating?

DL: It’s the physicality and analogue nature of the sketchbook that excites people. We spend so much of our day creating and consuming screen-based work, so when you get the chance to take a break, grab a pen, and make your mark on paper, it feels like a welcome distraction. It’s fun and creative. Plus, it’s not for a client – you don’t have to explain what you did or why. You’re completely free to express yourself however you want. Being part of something unique, like a global creative initiative, is particularly appealing for those living outside major design centres like London, New York or Tokyo.

INT: How did it grow to this scale? Have there been pivotal moments to it suddenly taking off, or has it been a slow and steady kinda thing?

KT: Two Pages grew slowly over time. The first couple of books we did in London were very exciting, but I soon realised we hadn’t really built the community I’d hoped for, and it started to feel a bit repetitive. The first big step was sending the books to European cities. Participating in design festivals in Thessaloniki, Porto, and Berlin made us realise we were onto something special. Since then, we’ve explored more locations, resulting in 44 sketchbooks and over 1,000 participants so far.

INT: And what have the highlights been – are there any anecdotes you can share around how people have connected, collaborated, across borders?

KT: One of the highlights was our exhibition in Porto during the European Design Awards Festival in 2017. We were incredibly lucky to be given an entire floor of Silo Auto, an enormous brutalist round car park in the middle of Porto, which had stunning 360-degree views of the city and very challenging wall spaces. We made it work with the help of an amazing crew! It was also surreal listening to Portuguese radio and hearing our project being discussed.

DL: Another memorable moment came from a participant in Santiago, Gabriel Ebensperger, who created a book based on the initial sketch he did for Two Pages. It was exciting to see an idea that originated in Two Pages later take on a life of its own as a publication. Also, there have been several artists, like Drawingzilla from São Paulo, who said that after participating in Two Pages, they felt inspired to return to hand-drawing, which is fantastic to hear.

INT: What do you think makes a good Two Pages piece?

KT: We recently hit the milestone of 1,000 participants, which means 1,000 original artworks, and they’re all so different that it’s tough to choose just one. I tend to like rules and can get a bit upset when they’re broken, but I have to acknowledge the effort that goes into the artworks that play with the boundaries of the format. Also, a good conceptual piece is always a winner.

DL: I love seeing the craft in different techniques. You can tell when someone has put a lot of effort into creating a piece; you can feel their passion, and that’s something I really appreciate.

INT: What have you learned from the project?

KT: People are incredibly generous, and creativity has no limits. I’m always impressed by how different creatives approach two empty pages and the variety of responses we receive. I’ve encountered so many amazing people all around the world, and I’d love to meet them all in person one day.

DL: Looking through the pages of the sketchbooks, you can see common trends and approaches to creativity worldwide. It makes you realise we’re all part of a small community, even if we’re miles apart. We care about the same things and express ourselves in similar ways. But then, when you look closer, you begin to see the different histories that influence contemporary practices. Comparing cities like New York and Seoul or Santiago and Tehran highlights those nuances, sparking fascinating visual conversations.

INT: Where’s it going next?

KT: Our newest sketchbook recently started in Nicosia, where we’re heading for an exhibition in January. And we’re currently in discussions with creatives in Cairo, Reykjavik, Beirut, and Auckland to start new sketchbooks there.

DL: The Two Pages archive has grown so much over the years, and our goal now is to make it widely accessible. We want students, researchers, and professionals to be able to use the archive as a reference and source of inspiration. To make this happen, we’re gradually uploading more artworks to our website and developing new sections with guest curators. We hope to launch the first curated displays at the beginning of the year. We also want to organise talks, workshops, and exhibitions around the world to share the project more broadly. But, of course, we can’t do this alone – collaborations and partnerships are essential if we want to reach as many people as possible.