The Brothers Brick

This ship is something I whipped together by request in a couple of evenings. I wanted to use lime, as I’m growing fond of that color, and this seemed like a good opportunity. I expect that the insect influence is rather apparent. When my wife saw it, she remarked that it looked like a grasshopper, which is the origin of the ship’s name.

This creation uses under 200 pieces (about 180) and would be a suitable entry for the Put Your Brick Where Your Mouth Is Contest, were I not a judge. There’s still time left before the deadline for you to submit an entry!

Many people have posted Vic Viper models recently. Most are meant for the fly-ins scheduled in tribute to the fallen builder Nnenn. Here’s one of my favorites, along with a reminder to look for the fly-in at whatever Lego fan convention you may be attending this year.

It’s a build by “The One And Only Mr.R” using my old favorite color, tan. It includes some nice compound angles, as well as an uncommonly compact shape. It also incorporates Nnenn’s favorite piece.

I, like so many others, adore How to Train your Dragon. The characters are great, the story is engaging, and it’s an entertaining movie. And I LOVE Toothless. He cracks me up to no end.

So Taylor Baggs‘ diorama of Toothless and his budding trust for Hiccup caught my eye, for sure.

Patrick (Jason son) has given us an excellent rendition of Mad Max’s car. I’m not certain of how common this car ever was as a police interceptor in Australia, but I like to think that they’re running around all over the place. Remember, two men enter, one man leaves.

It’s quite hard to tell that this Hogwarts Express train (the “Olton Hall” to be precise) by Carl Greatrix (Bricktrix) is actually LEGO. But it is aside from some custom stickers and a very small number of altered parts. The backdrop and track, however, is not.

And yes it would have been lovely if TLG had made the new Hogwarts Express train similar to this.

For interview number 12, Keith Goldman turns to an Editor-in-Chief of a major LEGO media outlet not named Andrew. Take it away, Keith!

If there is anyone in this hobby who has been there, done that, got the T-shirt, it is my next guest Joe Meno. Joe hop-scotches the globe spreading the gospel of LEGO like some itinerate preacher from the American south. If there was ever an AFOL worthy of the title Ambassador in Perpetuity, it is the mighty Joe Meno.

Photo courtesy of GeekyTom.

I sat down with Joe in his BrickJournal offices above the Second Empire Restaurant and Tavern in beautiful Raleigh North Carolina. We talked about never forgiving Disneyland for removing the Adventure through Inner Space attraction, General Chow’s chicken vs. General Tso’s chicken, and why America is still not out of Iraq. We also talked about LEGO.

The Build

Keith Goldman: You are so busy hop-scotching around the globe, living the dream of mannkinder everywhere….do you still have time to build? What percentage of your LEGO life is devoted to actual building? What motivates you to make time to build?

Joe Meno: Do I still have time? Usually, I make time.

I live in a strange world where my job is showing what others build (among other things), which inspires me to explore more, but doesn’t allow me the time to focus on actual building. My building time has declined quite a bit (and because of that, I don’t buy many sets — I need to build them!!) in the past few years, so what I do now is devote time to one big project each year.

Last year was my Just Another Day at the Bay micro layout, and the year before was Wall-E. This year, I had two projects, but one was too small (my iPad) and the other failed miserably (the NXT shark — it sank upon it’s first test swim in the tub.)

I build when I can because it’s a way to keep in touch with my roots in the hobby. And it’s hard to take someone seriously about a subject when they have little or no experience in it…so I build to keep my credibility.

KG: As an international man of LEGO mystery, you are uniquely qualified to comment on building styles from around the world. Is there any difference between building styles here in the States and abroad? Is there any real difference between builders?

JM: Good question — it’s something I have to look at every so often. The building styles of a region are a reflection of their environment, for the most part.

The US style of building is simple with detail, which shows best in space building. The European style in train layouts is much more refined, but that’s because the architecture is much richer there, the train is much more common there, and the AFOL community there is about one generation beyond the US community. The Far East building that I have seen has been a completely different design direction driven by mecha design.

So the best train builders are in Europe, the best mecha is in Japan, and the best space stuff is in the US. Keep in mind this is a general observation — there are outstanding builders everywhere of every type.

And the real difference between builders? Europeans can hold their alcohol MUCH better! :-)

More of Keith’s interview with Joe after the jump: (more…)

It’s hard to believe that the last episode of Lost airs tonight. Unlike 24 (which my wife and I finally gave up watching earlier this season), I’ll really miss J.J. Abrams’ odd creation.

Ryan Wood (lights) commemorates the end of six great seasons with a couple of odd creations of his own — CubeDude Hurley and John Locke.

Hurley sports his usual curly locks, while John Locke has an orange peel in his mouth.

Well, at least we still have Fringe, and Super 8 comes out next year (along with a possible Cloverfield sequel).

It’s sometimes tempting to dismiss LEGO models that make use of hundreds of the same part as doing nothing more than showing off the builder’s budget or a visit to the Pick-a-Brick wall.

Regardless of the source for the levers and Technic pins, the waving alien plant life in this Star Wars diorama by Kevin Murney (legorevolution) combines with some great details for a wonderful overall effect.

Note the edges on the wreckage of the clone troopers’ downed Republic Gunship, as well as the swath through the grass created by the dark Jedi’s thrown lightsaber.

Thanks to Joris Blok for the tip!

This Blacktron base by Michael Lehmann (Chiefrocker9000) looks like it would fit right in on the dark side of an alien moon, lurking in the inky blackness.

As a semi-related side note, did you know there’s a whole blog about Blacktron? There is — Color it Blacktron. Nice.

I’d certainly call this creation of Zack Milenius‘s an unfortunate meeting of opposing elements. Something tells me the pirates and the soldiers just don’t quite see eye-to-eye on issues. Ownership of this small piece of waterfront property being one of them.

Over the past several weeks I’ve been building gifts to thank various people of my university for the role they’ve played in my undergraduate education at Washington University in St. Louis. The past four years have been an intellectually stimulating journey in my study of arts and sciences and the biology major. At the same time, college saw the boom in my Lego hobby, and I am happy to have employed my experience in building to create these tokens of thanks for the people at my school.

This DNA sculpture park was made for my research mentor, whom I had the privilege of working in his genetics lab for three and a half years. The DNA helix codes for a secret message, which can be solved with some knowledge of molecular biology.

The pirate ship was made for my residential college director whom I’ve known since freshman year. This creation was my foray into building the pirate theme, and it was by a miracle that I discovered the resemblance of white windscreen pieces to sails. The exercise vignette was for my physiology professor, who really cared for her students and made a point to drill it into our young minds to exercise and take care of our bodies. Her quote engraved on the vignette got me back into running this year.

The DNA vignette was also given to my research mentor, and it was for the special occasion on his 60th birthday last week. The spiral effect achieved with Bionicle claws contines to be a hit; the effect of this technique far overshadows its simplicity. The vignette of the green ball is a gift for my behavioral ecology professor, one of the funniest and liveliest faculty at the school. I’ve compared attending his classes to watching stand-up comedy, and I hoped to have captured this liveliness in a video showing the motion and sound effects of the creation.

This depiction of our school’s landmark, Brooking’s Hall, is a gift for my super friendly and resourceful four-year adviser. The build uses the medium dark flesh color from the Prince of Persia sets, and the rarity of the colors reflected the $100+ pricetag on my Bricklink orders. The creation is also my first attempt at building an architectural replica, which I am quite happy for the push to expand my building repertoire.

This fantasy aircraft is for my lab bench mentor, who taught me the skills of DNA manipulation and the etiquette of research. I’ve never built an aircraft like this, but knowing his interest in hobby planes, I couldn’t think of anything better to make.

I presented the last of these gifts yesterday, and I am truly flattered by the responses. Each recipient, with the exception of my research mentor, have voluntarily told me the specific place where the gift will be displayed for a long time to come. In the case of my research mentor, I saw the creation on the windowsill of his office the next day I came to lab. From this, I learned that Lego is truly a special medium.

Today I graduated from college. My next step in life is to apply for medical school, and I’ll be taking a year off to work close to home. Thus, this break from my studies roughly translates into an obscene amount of time to build in the upcoming year.

Flick user retinence shows a very dab hand at Bionicle construction with his wolf. Apparently he “skimped on the technique”. I’d be curious to see what non-skimping looks like because it’s fantastic as is.

LEGO Chocobos were a bit of a fad a few years ago, but they were all based on the same design. Carlmerriam takes these key Final Fantasy characters to new LEGO heights, though it’s unclear why the big yellow guy isn’t allowed to roam free.

Via The Living Brick.

If you are attending Brickworld in June, you probably know that the theme for this year is space. More specifically, there are four collaboration displays designed to accommodate a variety of sci-fi creations. Here are the details:

The Space Frontiers display is a collection of space crafts and objects found in space. The guidelines are simple: if it flies or floats in space, then it has a place. You’re encouraged to build a stand for small or medium-sized creations so that your ships do not appear docked on the table.

The Renegade Planet display is dedicated to mechs and ground vehicles of the sci-fi genre. The overarching theme is a planet for outcasts who have built these mechs and vehicles to survive and conquer. You are encouraged to bring tan baseplate(s) that covers the area of your model. Feel free to build an outpost or other small desert structures.

The Vic Viper Fly-In display is a collection of Vic Vipers in memory of Nate “nnenn” Nielson, who passed away in April. There are many ways to build a Vic Viper, and there’s no shortage of inspiration from Novvember or the Vic Vipers Flickr group.

The Modern Warfare display is a collection of infantry, vehicles, and combat-torn buildings set in a sub-apocalyptic world based on the Modern Warfare video game. If you’re interested, there’s an active Flickr group that has everything you need to know to participate, including details on how to receive a free contributor’s pack from BrickArms.

Lastly, a huge thanks to Tyler Clites for creating the graphics for the first three space displays.

Brickworld is approaching fast in less than a month and a half. So far over 700 fans have registered, and it’s awesomely scary! Here are some announcements and reminders to get you prepared for the largest LEGO convention in the US.

Theme:
The theme for this year is 2010: Bricks In Space. You are encouraged to work something spacey into your MOCs. For the sci-fi builders, there are four collaboration displays where you will most likely find one suitable for what you’re bringing.

Registration
Reminder: the first 750 registrants that are paid in full by May 20, 2010 will receive an engraved name badge and goody bag. If you are a returning attendee, you can sign in to register. New attendees can sign up here.

Keynote speaker:
The keynote speaker for this year is Lisbeth Valther Pallesen, Executive Vice President for Consumer Education Direct (CED). CED includes: LEGO CLUB, LEGO Digital (Universe/LEGO.com), Community Engagement and Communications (Steve Witt), LEGO Brand Retail, LEGO Shop@Home, LEGO Education. I look forward to hearing from someone of the upper management who reports directly to the CEO.

Presentations and workshops
Presentation slots are filling up fast, so if you want to give a 50 minute presentation, please contact us! Registration for workshops will open soon, stay tuned.

Esther Walner Memorial Charity Auction
This year we have some of the most unique and rare items in our charity auction. Bring extra money for the auction or just stop by and see some cool stuff.

MOC cards
MOC cards are due June 1st. Please register all MOCs that you are bringing and the MOC card info for each one. Your MOC card provides info about your creation to other and will make your creation eligible for an award.

Transportation:
To get from the airport to the hotel, the fastest and most popular method is by taxi. In particular, American Taxi has the best rates (~$35 from O’Hare to the Westin). Their number is 847-255-9600, which you may want to store in your phone.

Hotel rooms:
As usual, Brickworld is held at the Westin Hotel & Convention Center. This year, we have reserved the entire place for Brickworld events and attendees. But don’t wait until the last minute to book your room. Last year the two-bed rooms were out prior to the event. Click here to book your room at the special Brickworld rate.

Pictures from previous Brickworlds are on the Brickworld Flickr group.