Tag Archives: Dioramas

There’s nothing like a massive LEGO diorama to prove that you’ve arrived as a LEGO builder. The LEGO dioramas we feature here span everything from realistic medieval castles to scenes from World War II, and more than a few post-apocalyptic wastelands.

TBB Cover Photo for November 2020: A Cozy Cabin Awaits

One of my favorite annual activities is heading to the mountain where my fam stays at an A-Frame in the snow, so this A-Frame build from, Norton74, immediately brings thoughts of winter and fun.

Where it gets good, and one of my favorite things about Norton74’s builds, is looking at all the details scattered throughout. These details tell the story of this cabin and really bring the build to life, further reminding me of our A-Frame vacay. Take a look at that log pile and saw, cookie rounds for log ends is a smooth move. Seriously, look at those logs. Other notable features that bring me to the mountain include the jagged roof, the abundance of wildlife, and the little doodads scattered here and there.

Now I need to see the inside of this cabin….is it February yet?

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This is no mine, it is a tomb

I’ve always loved this scene from The Fellowship of the Ring when the band makes their way into the Mines of Moria only to discover Balin and his dwarves have been wiped out. To me, it’s when the story first really turns an unexpected direction. Nathan Smith has beautifully recreated it in a LEGO diorama that perfectly imitates the scene’s camera angle and even lighting. From the scattered remnants of the dwarven miners, to the light on Gandalf’s magical staff, to the hobbits just barely visible in the doorway, this scene is just what I needed to take me back almost 20 years when I first saw the film.

Home is where the portions are

While certainly not the most comfortable place to rest your head at night, A hollowed-out AT-AT did provide Rey with shelter and plenty of metal to scratch out the days, she spent on Jakku waiting for her family to return. In this LEGO diorama by _derjoe, the fallen Imperial walker half-buried in the sand is captured in great detail for such a small scene. And if you look closely, you might spot a tiny Rey next to her iconic red speeder.

This junkyard’s a fest

Gather round the old battered ship for a bit of haggling and jawing! The dilapidated hulk of a downed spaceship sets the scene for a colorful marketplace in this diorama by Australian LEGO builder Rod Iseppi. Displayed as part of his club’s Bricktober virtual event, the old junkyard is teeming with banners and streamers that remind me more than a bit of some scenes from the new Star Wars trilogy, except for the presence of a few creatures like an eagle and an ankylosaurus pack animal. With the piles of scattered debris you can tell this place has a fascinating history and you’re sure to find some treasures. The garage doors elements in particular make a perfect drooping awning.

It’s a whole new world out there

When humanity finally makes it out into the farthest reaches of space and potentially finds extraterrestrial life, it’s doubtful it would look much like the lifeforms we know. And this alien world scene by LEGO builder Bart De Dobbelaer looks the part perfectly with a thick growth of…something. Plus, with its moody lighting, striking colors, and ominous planetary body in the background, the scene is highly atmospheric (so much so that the explorers don’t have their helmets on!). The large, scattered dark blue slopes make an interesting texture that’s reminiscent of broken shale. Look closely and you’ll spot lots of cool parts being used, but my favorites are the clear rings from Clickits on the alien growth.

See you at Pier 3... if you can make it back to the surface safely

We rarely focus on the piece count when discussing digital builds. Well, it’s not surprising since accumulating a palette of real-life bricks is a lot more challenging than copy-pasting some from a digital library. Nevertheless, designing something mind-blowing always requires a lot of skill and an artistic eye — whether you work digitally or not. I was totally taken aback by a diorama Finn Roberts revealed the other day. Being a result of thorough planning and an enormous amount of designing, this digital masterpiece brings back one of my childhood hobbies — spending hours spying insanely detailed posters from LEGO promo catalogs.

The composition, the focal length, the depth, even the angle — everything seems to be just perfect in this photo. Finn shares that it took him seven months to finish the designs of the facades. And these are just a part of the whole diorama, which weighs in at nearly 12,000 pieces. The crowded alley of the pier fit about 60 minifigure characters; I find a new one each time I look at the image! And if you are not into minifigures, check out these amazing shots of the facades. The longer you look, the more parts you notice that didn’t make into the final shot even though they are still there.

An autumn haven for the Post Master

Imagine a world in which the trees keep their vibrant autumn colors all year round. Vermont and New Hampshire aren’t even that charming, and they make a mint in tourism on account of their autumn leaves! Ayrlego has built such a world in LEGO and it’s called Otoño (The Autumn Isle). Here we see that a post office has recently opened in the sleepy settlement of Hojaroja on the Eslandolan Island of Otoño. When not delivering the mail, the Post Master lives upstairs in his quaint Tudor style home. I can get lost in all these details, particularly the lantern and the rustic chimney. I can imagine standing on that porch and soaking in the autumn splendor. We quite often get lost in Ayrlego’s worlds. Settle in for a while because you can too.

Greebles galore

There are very few LEGO builders whose creations give me the chills, but Bart De Dobbelaer is definitely one of them. Intruder Alert is where we see all of Bart’s photography, editing, and building skills combine into one work of art and the result is haunting… and gorgeous. My eye is immediately drawn to the silhouettes of the unidentified intruders, poised and ready. The walls are decked out with greebles and ominous neon lights have been cast to really set the atmosphere. The ribbed hoses running across the length of the floor, several of which are slightly bent, add to the realism of this scene. According to Bart, we’re looking at his entire light bluish gray collection greebled on the walls of this passageway. The spikes on the armed intruders, the textures on the floor and walls, and the curvature of the entrance all work in harmony.

Got your favorite sci-fi soundtrack playing in your head? Then you’re ready to check out some more of Bart’s creations.

Orange and White as the new Blue and Yellow

Cargo transports don’t always have to look like they stepped out of the set of Aliens, you know. Clean lines and bright colors make this LEGO hangar build by Boba-1980 stand out to me. The focus on white and orange harkens back to the Mars Mission theme, as well as the current City Space designs. (The City influence can been seen in elements like the canopy window from 2019’s 60225: Rover Testing Drive.) I like how having a second cargo pod as part of the scene lets you get a feeling for how the dropship operates. I also like the fact that there’s an exposed outlet and plug on the back wall. That’s a bit of detail I don’t come across very often.

Boba describes the theming as “CS.NextGen” – Classic Space the Next Generation. I’d love to see more builds in this style. I mean, I love classic space and all, but there’s always room for alternate universes that aren’t simply Neo Classic Space.

Not all is well in this city well

Brick Depository welcomes us all to this medieval LEGO city featuring a lovely city gate, a tudor style gate house and a city square with a well at it’s center. There’s only one problem. It appears the well is almost dried out and it appears something evil is lurking in the dark cavern.

There are so many nice things to highlight about this creation. Lets start from the top and work our way down the well to the cavern beneath it. I am a big fan of this tudor gate house using the technic chain links to represent the bare visible wood. Using a flexible brick in stead of a tiles gives the wall a more organic feel and makes it less bricky. The best thing about this creation has to be the fence in the city gate. It looks so intricate and detailed from afar and it took me a little while to figure out how it was made. It’s actually quite simple and quite clever. It’s made from plates with clips attached to evey second stud. This plate with clips then faces anotner plate with clips attached in the different direction. The clips on both plates interlock and voila! Last but not least, I am really fond of the smooth transition from paving to ground to cavern walls. Want to see what is hiding in the dark? Check out his flickr page for more pictures.

Maybe the Amazon will save itself

Brick built plants can help make bring a LEGO scene to life. And when the plants are the focus of a diorama, that scene is full of life, such as this collaboration between Emil Lidé and Bartu. This diorama shows four different sections of the amazon jungle that work together as one scene or as the same scene through time.

Through the series, these builders display a dried riverbed, which is overtaken by a fully grown jungle, then destroyed so someone can mine for gold before the jungle finally begins to retake the land. The vegetation throughout the build is fantastic, so much so that it is difficult to call out any one part! The colour choices are also on point, from the vibrant mixture of greens in the thriving jungle to the more drab dark tan and olive in the mining scene. Not to be overlooked is the subtle landscaping, from the smooth sides of the bricks making up the wet river bed to the slope made up of wedge plates showing how the miners have dug into the earth.

A very stable genius

A builder who goes by the name of Ayrlego has constructed a LEGO scene depicting a peaceful stable. He tells us that Lacryma, with its rolling plains and temperate climate, has become famous for the quality of the horses bred there. In the settlement of Elizabethville, many stables such as this one were built to house both the equines and their human companions. I would love to live in this world for a little while and maybe brush the horses and banter with the townsfolk. The word for how I feel about this is anemoia, a nostalgia for a time and a place I’ve never known. Are you feeling a bit of anemoia too? It turns out this builder is quite good at evoking feelings for a time and a place we’ve never been to. I hope you can check out the archives to see what I mean.