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.

Hobbiton is more than just Bag End!

The excellent photography and advanced building techniques may be what drew my attention to this creation by Patrick B., but they are not the most interesting part to me. What is so unique about this creation is the accompanying description, crediting a handful of builders who inspired Patrick’s Sandyman’s Mill, either by building their own versions prior or as Patrick’s sources for some techniques used. It is normal for builders to both reuse previously discovered techniques and credit their sources, but I rarely see it like this particular example. It almost reads like a scientific publication!

Click to see and read more about the build!

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A bridge beneath the tracks

There is so much about this little scene that stands out as awesome. Regularly featured here on TBB, excellent master builder Tim Schwalfenberg does it again with his River Crossing. He says, “You can’t really have a train without some sort of track to display it on,” so he built one. The textures and colours of the rocks and foliage are impeccable. The intricate detail that has gone into the iron framework of the span across the turbulent rapids is amazing, and the brilliant red engine leaps out from the subtle textures of the natural colours and contours on the cliff face.

Born to build on the bayou

In the U.S., Louisiana is sometimes known as “bayou country” thanks to its marshy, crocodile-laced swamps. Life on the bayou can be rough and tough, as Sebastian Bachórzewski shows us in one of his latest models. By mixing various earthy colors and greens, Sebastian captures the combination of muddy swampland with wild overgrowth. His rustic cabin shows signs of weathering within a harsh environment, and the way the bright green algae meets the dark and murky water is sublimely beautiful.

Gigantic LEGO diorama of Disney on Ice is over 16 square feet and has all your favorite characters

The tickets are nearly sold out to this amazing attraction, and all the minifigs want to go. Disney on Ice has come to LEGO City! This incredible diorama by Brick Knight not only contains the show itself, but also the venue and even the surrounding city blocks, all packed with such an astonishing level of detail and realism that I almost dread looking for parking already.

Click to see more, including the interior

A shipyard above all shipyards

When it comes to building LEGO maritime creations, one artist stands out as being a foremost authority. Arjan Oude Kotte has graced us with several of his masterpieces over the years. They include a Rotterham Harbor Tugboat, and a massive 1930’s Danish ship, among others. All his creations are packed with magnificent attention to detail and incredible personality. His latest build, Finnian’s shipyard, is another superb addition to his collection, and we love it! The colors and details are truly impressive.

Click to check out all the details packed into this shipyard

New York streets and Spider-Man spring to life in LEGO

It seems like a crime how underrated Dutch builder Barthezz Brick is, and he’s lucky to have Spider-Man stop this crime! Barthezz Brick has been featured on the Brothers Brick before with a smaller downtown city scene, but he has outdone himself with this large and extremely detailed diorama of Spider-Man, surrounded by busy and realistic city life.

Click to explore the diorama in detail

Incredible sprawling Victorian-age LEGO city has a railroad, a church, docks, factories and more

Built by the members of SwissLUG as a collaborative build, this amazing Victorian-age city has details everywhere you look. Unlike many LEGO cities, the properly scaled tall ship at the docks doesn’t dwarf the rest of the layout, fitting right in while also serving as a beautiful anchor in the center of the scene.

Click to see more pictures of this amazing LEGO port

Fallout’s Red Rocket truck stop built in LEGO

Immediately recognisable to anyone who’s played Fallout 4 — or saw any of its promotional material — here’s a LEGO build of the iconic Red Rocket truck stop by Allan Corbeil. The 50s retro diner aesthetic is captured perfectly, but so is the game’s signature air of neglect and decay — no mean feat to render effectively in pristine plastic bricks. The rocket itself is an obvious highlight, but don’t miss the brilliant shaping of the girder supports beneath…

Click to see more of the LEGO Red Rocket truck stop

An inventive picture of a past that never was

This inventor’s workshop building by Pieter Dennison has a wonderful “realistic steampunk” feel. There are enough quirky and clanky touches on display to inject a touch of the fantastic, but it’s all grounded in a grubby Victorian-era earthiness — the dark tones of the base, the subtle patches of faded colour set into the walls, the haphazard tiling on the roof. There’s a nice sense of activity and everyday life amongst the surrounding figures, but the winning detail for me is the wonky telescope poking out from the attic.

A new take on an ancient protector

While this creation by MemeLUG member Micah Beideman definitely looks amazing, I still have to ponder the practical benefit of a fence underwater. All joking aside, this is indeed a pretty sweet re-imagining of a LEGO Atlantis set, Gateway of the Squid.

The base looks somewhat rushed or simple until you take a closer look at it, with some nice textured stone walls in the back and very well placed vegetation. The little temple and titular gateway are not bad either. The main focus of the build is the squid though. It is not the first time we have seen inverted tyres used as organic texture, and it is not the first time the builder used this technique either, but he still managed to sneak in a bit of a unique twist with the printed 4×4 domes as eyes. I am personally always wary of using inverted tyres, because their shape and texture is hard to match with other bricks. Micah did not seem to have such problems, as the tentacle elements and a wedge slope used as the tip of the squid’s conical body flow very well with the tyres.

Cool off with this Hot Piece of Waterfront Property

If you’re traveling through Northern Italy, you might encounter the picturesque city of Lecco. In his latest masterpiece, “Memories of Lecco”, Dario Minisini chose to model a representation of the city’s renowned waterfront architecture. I really enjoy the overall composition of this model, which has made an excellent use of color. The brown and lavender buildings make for an excellent contrast to one another, and the mixing of old light yellowish-gray and light blueish-gray bricks creates a vintage-looking patina that feels authentic.

There is certainly no shortage of charm here. What makes Dario’s model so memorable is the amount of thought and effort that went into incorporating so much detail. A look at the tree with half its leaves missing suggests Fall must be right around the corner. Weathered-looking roof shingles are made possible with parts such as the boat oar, and the benches utilize classic Fabuland fences to great effect.

Fuel, Give Me Fire, Give me the Gas Station I Desire!

This rustic gas station was built by Markus Rollbühler. He started things off with the Ford tow truck, which then served as the inspiration behind the surrounding architecture and landscaping. According to Markus, he’s “not much of a car builder,” but I can’t help but be impressed by the intricate-looking towing mechanism on the back of his vibrant, bright-light-orange truck. Thanks to the excellent use of darker colors, Markus’ gas station really looks like something you might find while cruising down Route 66.

There are plenty of little details to enjoy, including the building’s tilted siding, the custom-built outdoor furniture, and the little red bird in the tree. In particular, I’m loving the design of those trees, which uses several green feather parts as leaves. This same technique was used in one of Markus’ models we featured back in October. In fact, that particular tree looks like it might have been transplanted next to this gas station.