Builder Martin Harris took a break from his usual Star Wars fayre to build something requested by a family member. The result is this charming minifig scale tennis court. There are so many neat little touches here – the choice of pink for the playing surface, the brick-built line markings, the ball in motion (thanks to a few transparent pieces) and use of older fence pieces to create the net. The inclusion of lights, bleachers and a cast of minifigs brings the whole scene to life.
India’s most famous piece of architecture is also the world’s most famous mausoleum and the final resting place of Mumtaz Mahal, a 17th-century empress consort. Builder Brick Point brings us a lovely microscale LEGO rendition complete with the tomb and its surrounding grounds, including the long reflecting pool in front.
And if you want to see how the builder created this, they’ve made an excellent 55-second time-lapse video of the construction showing the process layer by layer.
Owls are mainly nocturnal, solitary birds of prey who are known for their silent flight. Most birds of prey have eyes on the sides of their heads, but the owl’s forward-facing eyes facilitate their low-light hunting. Shawn Snyder has created a LEGO owl with plenty of attitude and a somewhat impudent glare. This is an owl who knows his position, with those piercing, hooded eyes, sharp talons on show, and wings spread wide in an act of defiance.
That’s a lot of character to be displayed by a brick-built owl – I feel watched.
Sky-fi may be among the more obscure LEGO building themes, but if you dig deep, plenty of amazing models can be found. The F70 Double Falcon by Vincent Tolouse is a great representation of the alternate-history early aviation-based theme, because it has everything, from beautiful curves to unique and imaginative shapes. Add to that the gorgeous dark red and chrome silver along with some nice part uses such as the Galidor shields at the front, and you get a very memorable and absolutely insane aeroplane.
Who needs to hit the gym when you have abs made of ABS? This stud by timofey_tkachev has the perfect grin to show off his six-pack—or should that be six-brix? The use of the tan large-figure parts for the pecs, lats and calves are spot on.
This windsurfer figure by Dmitriy and Anna is awesome, but just glancing at the picture hurts as my summer vacation is still too far away! Even though there are no huge waves around and the board has no actual sail, the posture of the figure is what makes this vignette so good. The figure on the board’s edge, with its body leaning back, makes it look as if the surfer was struggling with a pretty strong gust of wind.
I am not here to downplay the classic minifig’s ability to convey emotion, but it is a fact that its range of movement is much more limited than that of a Technic figure. Heikki Mattila uses this posability to great effect in his large scale vignette called “Thinking at night”. The technic figure is set in a convincingly contemplating and perfectly peaceful pose, while the setting is full of nice details like tyres, boxes and more. The backlit window makes for a convincing nighttime effect as well. I could not imagine a better happy place for a Technic figure than a workshop or garage.
Insects and other arthropods lend themselves surprisingly well to be built from LEGO. There are many elements like hinge pieces and wedge slopes that are oddly appropriate for building creepy crawlies. Olga Rodinova (Ольга Родионова) uses such pieces very well to create this (probably very smelly) beetle.
The overwhelming cuteness of this red panda by Vitreolum might blind you to some of the great LEGO parts usage on display. Sure, it’s the chubby feet and the stripey tail that’ll catch your eye — but don’t miss the white croissants as bushy eyebrows, and the black Kepi cavalry hat for a nose! This is a cracking little model, somehow managing to be realistic but packed with cartoony character at the same time.
This week our travels take us to South Bohemia, in the Czech Republic. There we tracked down František Hajdekr, a builder known for his small builds of big vehicles and equipment of all kinds. František lives in the town of Bavorov, with his wife and three sons. He is 39 years old, teaches high school and runs his own Youtube channel, which is loaded with lots of “how-to” LEGO videos. Let’s explore his mind a bit, shall we?
TBB: Hello, František! How you got into LEGO and what was your first set?
František: My first set was the classic Town 6621 Fire Truck from 1984. And for a long time it was the only set that I had. Lego was not so available in my country, so I built mainly with different building blocks – Seva or metallic Merkur (Czech made).
The Industrial Revolution began in Britain in the late 1700s and saw a shift from manufacturing within people’s homes, using hand tools or basic machines, to powered machinery, factories, and mass production. Factories and steam locomotives were signature developments of the times. Toltomeja has used both of these icons of the industrial revolution in his LEGO diorama. There’s a large factory with tall chimneys emitting clouds of smoke (the part used is the cloth spider’s net) and a steam train loaded with coal. The bridge and the factory are very nicely put together, but it was the brick-built lettering and the little horses and carts that really caught my eye.
The steam locomotive is cleverly built at this scale, using a telephone handset as the coupling rod connecting the drive wheels, while a few treasure chests become the open wagons containing coal.
This entry for the ABS Builder Challenge by Brother Steven is simply prickle-licious. The dark red and bright yellow of the desert flower really make the creation leap out, contrasting beautifully against the green cactus. And those olive spines are so prickly they almost sting your eyes. This build is simple, elegant, and perfect. I love that it comes with a cheeky note from the builder: “A gift to my competition. Handle with care.” Brilliant!
