The resemblance between my and my friend Jodie’s drawings is uncanny. Jodie’s sketchbook (below) looks a lot like my sketchbook from 2019 (above). The weirdest thing is that these pages basically have the same layout—notice how people surround the center figure. We even have similar crosshatching!  

This line drawing style was prevalent in my sketchbooks during my time in Boston (2017-2020). Her work reminds me of the times I’d sit on the train and draw people. A lot of my drawings were overworked, but I was trying to get a handle on drawing people.

Looking at Jodie’s sketches makes me wish I had drawn more back then.  I wish I would have given myself unlimited permission to draw and make mistakes. Now that my style has changed, I treasure my first drawings and admire the work that Jodie is doing. I guess this uncanny resemblance between our work reminds me to let go of rules and draw.