Living LEGO - a sculpture

Author: Brett Thomas
Published: 4th June 2007
Comments (18) Stumble
Living LEGO - a sculpture

"I AM ALIVE!" - LEGO bricks take on a whole new life in this sculpture exhibit.

It's not very often that we see something so unique as to warrant a news story when it doesn't even have a passing relationship to technology. However, this one (as most of these do) definitely has a passing relationship to utter geekdom: The Lancaster Museum of Art in Pennsylvania is running a LEGO sculpture exhibit.

The exhibit is filled with the work of Nathan Sawaya, a self-proclaimed "LEGO Artist." What exactly does that entail, you may ask? Well, it means he gets to play with LEGO bricks - while getting paid. According to his interview on CNN, that's the major difference between the hobbyist and the artist. The interview is full of great insights about turning a man's dream into his job.

Sawaya is certainly an unusual bucket of bricks, having left his job as a lawyer in order to play with everyone's favourite building blocks. Apparently, his work isn't going unappreciated, either - the Lancaster exhibit saw thousands of visitors from all around the nearby area. It's done so well that Sawaya is actually going on a national tour with his creations, in a traveling exhibit known as "The Art of the Brick". It's next stop will be the Discovery Center in Illinois.

It just goes to show that with a little grit, determination and a whole lot of geek-spiration, you can make just about anything into a job. If you're interested, you can check out a gallery of few more pieces on Nathan's site.

Have you got a thought on the LEGO creations? Do you see a mod in the making? Perhaps you just want to shove a mainboard in one of these things and bring it to digital life? Tell us about it in our forums.
Quote Mankz 4th June 2007, 14:32
That looks bl**dy cool with the lego falling out of the chest chasm.
Quote ElThomsono 4th June 2007, 14:36
The plural of Lego is Lego ;)

On his website there's a Lego Han Solo, awesome :D
Quote DXR_13KE 4th June 2007, 14:45
awsum!!!!!!!! :D the inner geek is happy.
Quote Bluephoenix 4th June 2007, 14:55
on the mod topic, while lego may seem to be a good thing for building a case out of due to it thermal properties and high self-ignition temperature (a value most people don't realize can be very low for the acrylic we like to use so much) it lacks the lateral stability and general rigidity that steel or aluminum naturally has.

I other words if you built a lego case without glue, and didn't build it in the exact proper manner, the load-bearing beams would snap like twigs.

I just tested the breaking point of one of the long technic-style beams and was surprised to find it's failing point along its longest edge (which should be the strongest) is only 2 pounds.
Quote bubsterboo 4th June 2007, 15:05
Makes me want to buy thousands of Lego bricks and build some sculpture like thing.
Quote steveo_mcg 4th June 2007, 15:47
There's a jedi statue of liberty on the guys site, its also pretty minty
Quote Buzzons 4th June 2007, 16:38
ElThomsono is right, plural is Lego!
Quote CardJoe 4th June 2007, 16:51
No, he's not.

Singular of lego = :(
Plural of lego = :D
Quote supermonkey 4th June 2007, 16:55
That's really quite cool. I remember going to see a LEGO exhibit at our local mall when I was a kid. I still have my collection in a large bin in my closet, and it's not uncommon for me to play with them on occasion.

Just an FYI, LEGO bricks should never be abbreviated as "LEGOs." The last page in this document will give you the necessary spellings. Note that the name is always in capital letters, never used as a generic noun, and never abbraviated.

-monkey
Quote Da Dego 4th June 2007, 17:47
Dear lord, y'all are persnickety. Fxt. :p
Quote rowin4kicks 4th June 2007, 18:52
looks great i wish i had his skills!
Quote Bladestorm 4th June 2007, 19:24
I like the PC and monitor cases built out of lego B)

http://www.brickartist.com/fully_functioning_pc.html
Quote Hugo.B 4th June 2007, 20:10
He was a lawyer and went back to his childhood occupation :D


H.B.
Quote Ghys 4th June 2007, 20:31
about 4 years ago I opened my Lego box and started messing around with them..... I ended up with a sweet looking aircraft , all in black. I like it so much that it's still exposed on my desk :D

okay it's not nearly as good as what this guy can do, but.... nevermind :'(
Quote Constructacon 4th June 2007, 23:03
That's so awesome. Class quote from his piece titled Obstacle
Quote:
Originally Posted by Brickartist.com
A: Why doesn't he just walk around the big white thing?
B: Because it's a metaphor.
A: A metaphor?
B: Yes, the white block represents an obstacle. In life one must overcome obstacles, not just avoid them.
A: Oh, okay, so this guy is walking down the street and someone dumps a big ol' refrigerator box in front of him. So instead of just walking around it, he goes and drags a ladder out and decides he needs to go over it. That makes sense.
B: Metaphoricaly speaking, yes.
A: I see. So would you say a guy who plays with a children's toy all day is like a metaphor for someone who is avoiding growing up and taking any real responsibility?
B: Shut up.
Quote The_Beast 4th June 2007, 23:10
wow that must have taken a long time to do
Quote Tulatin 5th June 2007, 06:34
It's only a matter of time now before we see a lego [NSFW] goatse
Quote Brooxy 5th June 2007, 18:07
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tulatin
It's only a matter of time now before we see a lego [NSFW] goatse

Or a lego relix...

That aside tho, it's pretty amazing some of the stuff that he's done on there...like the Iwo Jimna replica....and the Jedi...all he needs is a sith to go with it...
Quote Ghys 5th June 2007, 20:55
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bladestorm
I like the PC and monitor cases built out of lego B)

http://www.brickartist.com/fully_functioning_pc.html

good thing the keyboard keys are not made of lego as well or else whoever uses it will have bleeding fingers
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