About Lino

Lino is an artist, humorist, and occasional responsible adult. He is the co-founder of a challenge-based LEGO car club called LUGNuts which boasts over 1100 members worldwide. He proposed automotive building challenges every month for ten years (120 challenges!) which he and the other members built accordingly. LUGNuts has retired its challenges on its 10th anniversary but still remains a cornerstone for LEGO automotive builders. Between his artistic work and LEGO builds, Lino has been published in several books, including Beautiful LEGO, Beautiful LEGO: Dark, and Beautiful LEGO: Wild. He lives in Washington with his girlfriend and dogs.

Posts by Lino

Ian Ying is the Cool-One now

Any fans of Hotwheels will recognize the stubby, radically customized twin-engined ice truck cast called Cool-One. It’s one of my fave molds. In fact, I built my own LEGO version of it way back in the day. My research says it didn’t get featured here. Maybe it just wasn’t cool enough. Anyway, Ian Ying is here to remedy that and give this Cool-One his own LEGO treatment. I’m digging the stance, the colors, and the chromed-out rims are an excellent touch. A confident builder will supply his source material in the photo just as Ian did here. I’m smitten! It wasn’t the first time, either. Check out why Ian Ying is so darn cool.

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The office building that looks like an office copier

LEGO builder Milan Sekiz tells us that this is their first attempt at Brutalist architecture. I’ve seen plenty of Brutalist architecture in person, plus I’ve taken a few architecture courses in college so I know a bit about the subject but let’s consult Google as to what they say about it. Brutalism is generally characterized by its rough, unfinished surfaces (check!), unusual shapes,(check!) heavy-looking materials,(check!) straight lines,(check!) and small windows (yes!). It seems by all accounts, Milan has achieved Brutalism. I like the very orderly gardens flanking the building and the vines creeping up the middle of it are a nice touch. It adds a bit of warm nature to this otherwise cold and imposing structure. I can’t help thinking that it looks a bit like an office copier, or better yet, someone’s inbox that is chock full of…Brutalism. OK, I’ll admit that I probably should have thought that analogy through. But do you have a better one?

While you’re thinking that over, go ahead and check out the other stuff Milan Sekiz has built and while you’re at it take a look at our Architecture archives including some very neat Brutalist designs.

The Temple of Technology demands your time

This kinetic LEGO structure by Sheo has presented a rare instance in which I’d rather not flap my piehole about it and allow the creation to speak for itself. It’s called the Temple of Technology and is part of a series of modular buildings Sheo has constructed.

I can assure you the magic of this creation is best seen in motion so be sure to watch the video. That use of the clock hands is just brilliant!

Keep on logging, Mr. Spijkhoven

Some legends just keep on trucking. This LEGO creation by LegoMathijs is a model of a KrAZ-255, a rough and tumble off-road truck that was in production from 1967 to 1994. That real-life inspiration alone is enough to call this build legendary and with excellent detailing and suitably rugged terrain, that would be an apt moniker for it. But this model is also inspired by Ingmar Spijkhoven. More than a year after his passing, other builders are still finding inspiration from the pivotal truck builder. It just goes to show that some legends never die, really. I’m smitten and I think Ingmar would be too.

A rough quickie with the Maverick RS

Martin Vala tells us he was looking for “some quick joy”. I think he found it in the Can-Am Maverick RS buggy. I would love to drive this thing hard while hopping along sand dunes! Martin tells us he whipped this up in only two nights and thankfully just in time for the Dakar Rally races coming up January 2nd through the 14th. It would seem this particular LEGO builder has been off our radar until now. However, a quick perusal through his Flickr photostream proves he’s going to be a builder we’ll surely keep a close eye on from now on.

See it in glorious detail from nearly every angle with this short video.

Been spendin’ most their lives living’ in a Theives’ Paradise

Renowned LEGO builder Bart De Dobbelear tells us that “The golden city ruins of Kadena were renowned for their loot and riches.” Oooh! It’s ours for the taking, then. Look at all that beautiful gold! Book my flight, I’m calling in sick! But then he goes on to say; “Many thieves tried their luck, but only a handful escaped the clutches of the city’s guardians.” Wait, guardians? I knew there would be a catch! Cancel that flight. I am not sure if the crazy-haired crab-robots or the two thuggish-looking fellows are the thieves or guardians. Perhaps the guardians are unseen and they’re even bigger and hideous-er than what is pictured here. Either way, I want no part of it. My sense of adventure ends right at making cheap and awkward intros but it really goes no further than that. I’ll just be happy with the pay TBB gives us. Wait, they pay us, right? Don’t they? It’s hard to keep track when everything is direct deposit these days.

While I work that out with TBB’s Human Resources Department, you can check out why Bart De Dobbelear is in a league of his own when it comes to creating fabulous textures and far-out alien worlds. Wait, do we have a Human Resources Department?

No, Mr. Bond. I expect you to die.

This fun LEGO creation by Fedde Barendrecht reminds me why I love James Bond movies. There’s always a certain formula to it involving an eccentric baddie with a sweet lair and a massive ego. Instead of just covertly shooting Mr.Bond any maybe ending the series twenty-some-odd movies ago, they possess a flair for theatrics. Usually, they strap the suave not-so-secret agent to some buzzsaw-crotch contraption while methodically telling him in full detail how he’s going to die. This gives 007 plenty of time to not only escape the predicament but also have a martini and a romp in the sack with some pretty lass or another. Total classic Bond stuff! If you like this, then check out how Fedde Barendrecht tickles our funny bones as well as makes us a bit concerned for his well-being on occasion. Also James Bond stuff!

A post-apocalyptic meat buffet

Some visions of the apocalypse involve dark, war-torn cities, some take place in barren deserts, while others speak of…some kind of Squid Game, somehow. This LEGO diorama by Insomnia Builds features a society of people who live in cabins on the ocean’s surface. At a quick distant glance, we see a collection of neat little cabins and even floating gardens. Aside from needing urgent roof repair, the denizens here seem quite content to live within their floating society. But with water comes scary tentacle monsters and that is precisely what they’re dealing with here. This piece bears the uncanny title of Meat Buffet and the apparently sleep-deprived builder serves up the caption of “I’m sure someone will eat meat today”. The thing is, we’re not sure if he means the people of this watery town or the tentacle monster. From the looks of things, it’ll probably be both!

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Paul puts the Funko in LEGO

If you’re ever in Everett, Washington be sure not to miss the Funko Headquarters Store. It’s like a museum of fun and pop culture. While I am not into Funko Pops per se, I still bring out-of-town friends there on occasion to see the sights and even I couldn’t resist buying a Godzilla boardgame and a Jiangshi hopping ghost figure. There’s likely something there for everyone. Paul Hetherington is a major Funko Funatic so he built the Funko Headquarters Store in LEGO. He has accurately portrayed the outside of the building with their retro Funko sign as well as their secondary sign stating that they are “purveyors of pop culture”.

Just like the actual building, the real feast for the senses lies within. Here Paul has accurately recreated the MARVEL room complete with Hulkbuster Ironman, the Hulk, and even the Green Goblin, Spider-Man, and Deadpool. It’s neat to see so many minifigues shopping for their favorite Pops. Paul has integrated several Funko Mystery Minis to emulate the large-scale POP characters both in and outside the building. But before you LEGO purists have a conniption fit about it, if you’re an adult fan of LEGO, chances are you might have a few other toys lying around too. So why not integrate them? There’s plenty of custom sticker work here to upset the purists as well. The last time we upset LEGO purists we received a record number of complaints from folks with AOL email addresses. Fun!

Another amazing section of the store that is also a treat for the senses is the fabulously retro Pop Factory. Here you can create any Funko Pop you want. Why you could even Funko Pop-ify your own curmudgeonly mug complete with a 90’s-era-heavy-metal-guy goatee, steely gaze, and devil-may-care attitude. But I definitely didn’t think about doing that so don’t get that idea in your head!

The Funko Headquarters Store also has a Harry Potter room, Star Wars room…OK, I won’t spoil it all for you but definitely go there sometime to see for yourselves. But before you do, check out why Paul Hetherington is among our favorite LEGO artists.

Paint the world as you see fit

Being an artist has some perks. If you can imagine a world that doesn’t exist, simply invent it through art. As Bob Ross advised, just paint in those happy little trees! That is, in a sense, what First Order Lego has done here in LEGO. With a paint palette and brush in the composition, we see just a hint of color with a Mediterranean-style village at the base of a massive tree. It is just enough to clue us in that this builder is pretty good with color but the real star of the show here is what is not “painted”. Monochrome is notoriously difficult to draw or paint. It relies heavily on texture for great effect and that is what is done here in spades. Hundreds of mini wheels make up the leaves of the tree which creates breathtaking visual effects.

There are even more little houses going up the slope of the trunk that are just like the other ones except “unpainted”. He tells us it was all built-in under two weeks and had won the top prize at Bricking Bavaria, a LEGO convention in Germany. A well-deserved win, in my opinion. Here we see the artist “painting” his world with beautiful happy colors. The closeup makes it clear that the entire sculpture stands on Death Star halves. What brilliant details!

Send the Republic Frigate...and also the entire Republic fleet

The star of the show here is clearly Fuku Saku’s 1:250 microscale LEGO Charger c70 Republic Frigate. It has all the right shaping and as much detail as a model twice or three times its size. However, let’s not discount the awesomeness of his Jedi Starfighters, Republic Gunships, and the LAAT/c Assault Carrier. In fact, I’m personally more enthralled with the smaller models. The new UCS Republic Gunship set is huge, even impressive. I voted for it but LEGO may be disappointed to learn that I may not get the set as it…I don’t know…just doesn’t have any more detail or playability than prior smaller Gunship sets. These microscale models, however, have as much detail and accuracy as they need and at just a fraction of the size. I can see myself hanging out with Fuku for a day, building several copies of these Republic Gunships and LAAT/c’s to pad out his Republic fleet over a couple of beers. It’s the kind of thing that makes us adult builders rather excited. What do you think of these microscale models?

Fuku is no stranger to making little things seem pretty awesome. Check out what I mean in our archives: Fuku Saku LEGO.

The Unimog 406 is ready for action!

Winter is coming, and this time it has nothing to do with Game of Thrones but rather a regular winter in the northern hemisphere. Thankfully, Alexandre Rossier is up for the task with this massive LEGO ’67 Unimog 406. He tells us that the fully-detailed model is remote-controlled with a 4×4 with central differential, portal axles, and a 6-cylinder engine that you can admire by removing the cabin. I’m particularly smitten by its stance, color, beefy tires, snowplow…pretty much everything that makes it a Unimog.

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