When Takuya Fukugawa first started building pixel art models in LEGO, he took inspiration from video games, often with stunning results. More recently, the builder has been turning to nature as muse. Last year, it was a blue whale that took our breath away. The builder’s latest features an Emperor penguin and chick.

The build is actually a remake of the artist’s previous take on the subject, swapping “realistic” colors for impressionist ones. It’s a beautiful evolution of style that shows how much vitality there is in pixel art as an aesthetic. The wider range of colors have an emotive quality – a warmth that captures the truth of the moment.

Later this month, “Pixel sculptor” Takuya is receiving his first public exhibition in Tokyo at the America Bashi Gallery.