About Alexander

Alexander Alekseev is an active member of the Russian LUG since 2007. Linguist by education, he believes that LEGO pieces are the most effective mean of self-expression and communication between people.

Posts by Alexander

The Brothers Brick LEGO Builder of the Year 2021 [News]

Every day the team at The Brothers Brick showcases the best models put together by the global community of creative LEGO builders. However, amongst the thousands of talented builders around the world, there are always a few whose work offers inspiration to the rest of us — displaying mastery of technique and creativity across a variety of building styles.

The Brothers Brick is delighted to name Markus Rollbühler as our LEGO Builder of the Year 2021.

Click to see a selection of Markus’ models from 2021

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The Brothers Brick LEGO Creation of the Year 2021 [News]

Although this year’s shortlist of the best LEGO creations didn’t include a record-breaking number of models, the variety of genres, scales, and building techniques made it particularly hard for The Brothers Brick to pick just one creation. We had to ask ourselves which creation made 2021 remarkable and memorable. The answer is Jan Woznica‘s Tales of the Space Age, which we are pleased to announce as our LEGO Creation of the Year 2021.

Click to see more photos of the LEGO Creation of the Year 2021

One small ‘quack’ for a duck, one giant symbol for the toy industry

The iconic LEGO wooden duck, which was one of the first toys produced by Ole Kirk Kristiansen and his team, has to be one of the most famous ducks in the world. Still, we don’t see modern brick-built versions that often! Based on the original toy and the last year’s 40501 The Wooden Duck, the recent mini-build by Christian Rau is simply adorable. Thanks to the great use of printed eye tiles and its open beak, this duck is as funny as an under-50-piece creation can be.

What’s peculiar, it’s not the first mini wooden duck we’ve seen; you might remember another version by Adeel Zubair. It’s amazing how different the builds are even though both are so tiny!

Dashing through the sand in BX T1+

I know it may be a bit confusing: the latest BX T1+ by Martin Vala looks way too clean for a Dakar rally car. There are no patches of sand all over the fenders, no dents from multiple high-speed accidents. But let’s seize the moment and enjoy the brilliant design of the car’s body and chassis before it starts its journey among the dunes. The neat combination of LEGO Technic wheel arch panels with System elements is perfect, but I genuinely wonder what the car would look like with different liveries, such as sponsors’ logos and a racing number. This would totally take this particularly realistic build to the whole other level.

And if you feel like checking out Martins’ Flickr gallery, do not miss out on the additional shots of the car revealing the chassis.

Shortlist announced for The Brothers Brick LEGO Creation of the Year 2021 [News]

The year 2021 was challenging in many ways, to say the least. However, LEGO builders also took on new challenges like never before, channeling their creativity in new and delightful ways. The year brought us thousands of fascinating models, from tiny dioramas to the largest collaborative projects. The Brothers Brick team has taken a look back over the last 12 months and pulled together our selection of the best LEGO creations of 2021 for our sixth annual LEGO Creation of the Year award.

Take a look at the fantastic models we’ve shortlisted, and stay tuned for the announcement of our LEGO Creation of the Year 2021 on New Year’s Eve!

Be sure to check out the LEGO Creation of the Year 2020, LEGO Creation of the Year 2019, 2018, 2017 and 2016 to see what honourable company this year’s nominations are keeping.

Click to see all of 2021’s nominees

This massive LEGO Technic icebreaker paves its way through ice using a four-motor mechanism [Video]

Floating LEGO boats are no news; now and then, a new playset with a floating hull element appears in stores for kids to play in a bathtub or the nearest pond. These can be fun, but only if your bathtub is big enough or it’s warm enough outside. Living in the cold Russian climate, Kirill Mazurov had to develop a unique design to keep his boats sailing even when it’s 0°F (-18°C) outside. This way comes a functioning LEGO icebreaking capable of crushing thin river ice!

Click here to watch the icebreaker in action!

Penelope’s Friendly Viper

What do you build when your sister asks you to play with her LEGO? I’d say a Disney castle or a fantasy adventure diorama. But according to Frost, sister’s bricks are perfect for building a Vic Viper or two. Obviously, for her favorite characters, like Penelope. I like this one for its shape and glowing coral color, which looks amazing with open space in the back. Even such a simple Vic Viper got a couple of nice piece combinations, like the tiny bow and arch pieces on the tip of the wings.

Your new Uber driver has arrived

In case you’re going anywhere tonight, Jonathan Elliott has just upgraded your Uber ride. It’s no a longer a modest 17-brick-big 605 Taxi from 1971, but instead, it’s an ultra-futuristic EV vehicle. Like the emissions, the number of open LEGO studs has gone from over 30 to nearly zero. Although it took the brick-built taxis to evolve this far, let’s hope the real ones will become equally cool soon enough.

LEGO Monkie Kid 2022 sets revealed online [News]

LEGO has just published official product pictures of the new Monkie Kid 2022 sets. The new wave of sets will include at least seven new products varying from a box of bricks for free-style building all the way to a city block in the style and format of the iconic Ninjago City. The new sets will be available from January 1, 2022.

More picture of the new sets…

The color technology

According to the picture description by Pascal, this Vic Viper has to do something with secret spacecraft technologies. To my surprise, a close look at the build didn’t reveal any hyperdrives, wires, tubes, laser guns, or force shields. I mean, all of these are probably there, but this build looks more like a piece of concept art. It takes LEGO bricks’ geometry to the extreme with elementary shapes. Ultimately it’s the color accents that make the whole thing stand out. Simple and bold!

Fight for Rebels piloting this outstanding X-wing as big as the largest LEGO sets

A quick scan through Jared Reisweber‘s collection of custom builds makes it clear: you build big or you go home. Jared is at his best when managing large-scale vehicles and spaceships. For me, it was out of question whether Jared would build an X-wing; it was all about when he would finally design one. Now, here comes one of the most impressive brick-built Star Wars fighters consisting of mind-blowing 7,349 pieces.

This X-wing is 600 pieces bigger than the recent Star Wars Ultimate Collector Series 75313 AT-AT, and all these pieces result in striking details. Thanks to the sheer scale of the model, Jared uses multi-layers combinations of plates for a genuinely realistic design.

The build measures 33.3″ x 36.9″ (roughly 80 by 90 cm). With adjustable wings, such a centerpiece could easily outmatch even the most giant LEGO Star Wars spaceships, like 75252 Ultimate Collector Series Imperial Star Destroyer. But which scale would you prefer for your Star Wars collection?

New LEGO Star Wars 2022 sets featuring Hoth revealed online [News]

With two new LEGO Star Wars 2022 sets revealed today, it’s safe to say LEGO is paying yet another visit to the distant and cold world of Hoth. The new sets are full of minifigures — both good guys and bad guys — and will complement the new Ultimate Collector Series 75313 AT-AT just perfectly. And while the AT-AT will be available starting November 26, the other sets are slated for release January 1, 2022.

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