LEGO artist FukuTaku is a master of 3D models in the pixel art style. What makes his builds truly special is how he uses color to simulate video game lighting, which combined with studio lighting of the bricks, make his models positively glow. Like ray tracing you can touch. Until now, most of FukuTaku’s work has focused on video game tributes, like his Dragonlord, which wowed us with its searing heat. For his latest masterpiece, FukuTaku turns to the natural world with a pixel whale that honors the colors of the sea with a cool and tranquil glow.

The builder utilizes the full spectrum of LEGO blue elements, working mostly with 1×1 plates and hundreds of SNOT bricks to achieve the organic curves. I appreciate the texture details, like the use of smooth plates on an otherwise stud-covered body to help a single row of studs stand out as the mouth. A smattering of bricks with recessed studs simulate barnacles that you might find on a humpback whale. But to fully appreciate the model, it helps to see it in motion.

For this model, FukuTaku chooses to celebrate the LEGO medium by allowing a glimpse inside the model to expose the building technique. Transparent bricks billow around the opening like air bubbles. It’s exciting to see FukuTaku not just refine a style all their own, but take risks like this to grow as an artist.