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.

Ladies in tank tops win the war

In December 1941, the National Service Act made the conscription of women legal in the UK, employing those of working age in essential work for the war effort. When production of tanks, planes, boats and munitions were needed, the women of Britain were called on to come into the factories and build the war machines, and without them success would not have been possible. Martin Harris has built a tribute to these women, and his scene is set in a converted railway station, using the track as an assembly line for the British-made Churchill tanks.

Women are the primary workers. However, you can see that there is an older man who has just turned up after work to help with turret placement. I had to try and forgive Martin for having a yellow faced minifigure with flesh hands in the scene …perhaps it is just me that finds that distressing to look at! The overall scene is beautifully tied together as a cohesive whole. I particularly love the old railway station backdrop with its large light fixtures and combination of glass, dark red brick and stone grey pillars.

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Obsolescence is the price of progress

Finding beauty in decay may be difficult and an acquired taste, but this scene by Revan New is so realistic, I believe everyone can appreciate the LEGO building skills on display. The photography and editing help a lot in achieving the effect, but the build itself is nothing to scoff at.

The uneven angles, hanging chains, and cluttered floor show obvious disuse, and the metal supports everywhere give it a strong industrial look. The composition is excellent, with moody lighting revealing a few splashes of yellow, around which the whole scene seems to be built.

Put that in your pipe and smoke it

Prolific Australian builder Karf Oohlu (aka Fedde Barendrecht) makes use of the still relatively-new “macaroni pipe” piece to create a twisty bendy pipey masterpiece of greebling. I have no idea what this piece of equipment does, but I imagine it makes some immensely pleasing gurgling noises when it’s operating. Aside from the piping, the use of engine turbine inserts placed back-to-back makes for an effective gasket – I’ll be stealing that for my own models.

Revenge: best served cold. Justice: best served from the shadows

I don’t know much about the DC Superhero universe beyond the recent movies, but I do know this scene by Andrew Cookston is masterfully constructed. I love the use of the tooth plate pieces as icicles, while the placement of Batman (have you spotted him yet?) lurking in the shadows, just out of focus, is perfect. I viewed the photo a few times before I noticed him!

The presentation overall is outstanding — fantastic photography, with a wonderful focus, good lighting, and smart steam effects.

Beauty and craftsmanship under one roof

Have you ever watched someone blow glass? It takes patience, persistence, and a good helping of being able to move on when your gorgeous work of art crashes at the last moment. It happens a lot, by my understanding. Builder mike m. has presented us a brick-built workshop, in a scale we don’t often see: Technic figures! The use of Hagrid’s hair works really well, and allows for such detail with the tools and glass.

At the end of the iron road

Some classic LEGO themes are wildly popular, but somehow feel underrepresented by custom LEGO models, such as LEGO Pirates and Wild West. At least for the latter we have a new build to enjoy in this frontier train station by Marcel V. With its unique roof and prominent clock, the build looks almost steampunk, but there are no fictional elements to be found.

There are a lot of interesting bits to see here. The semi-circular section’s construction is quite impressive, as is the roof itself. The railroad tracks look very good, done with a technique I am seeing more and more in fan creations. And as a cherry on top, Marcel has sprinkled the creation with all sorts of clutter, from sacks and guns to the local wildlife — all of which breathes life into the scene.

Hail to Mother Kali who burns the world another time

Love it or hate it, you can not deny that the second Indiana Jones film, The Temple of Doom, is memorable. I immediately recognized this scene by W. Navarre and I’m sure most of you did too.

The gruesome scene of a human sacrifice’s heart being ripped out is recreated nearly to perfection with cultists, statues, and rocky walls, but most importantly a fiery pit that appears seething hot – an effect achieved not by clever lighting tricks, but by building the “light” onto the lit-up wall itself. As expected of this builder, the diorama is packed full of experimental building techniques, and there is a lot to learn by inspecting Navarre’s work closely.

We built a wall, we built the pyramids!

LEGO’s 2015 line of Architecture sets introduced a skyline format which has become quite popular amoung fan builders from Paris to Tokyo. Simon NH takes a brand new approach to creating skylines, building a one-of-a-kind evolution of construction. No matter how much building experience you have, each of these tiny structures features some crazy solutions, like the Colosseum’s walls built from light bluish gray 1×1 tiles with 1/2 circle (aka Stadium tiles).

The day elves drew elven blood

It is understandable that the Lord of the Rings trilogy inspires more LEGO creations than its expanded lore collected in the Silmarillion, since the latter reads more like a textbook than a series of stories. But it is refreshing to see creations inspired by it nevertheless, even if the hand of builders has to be forced by contests such as the Middle Earth LEGO Olympics on MOCpages. This scene of the kinslaying at Alqualondë by John Snyder is one such refreshment, and it was indeed built for the aforementioned contest.

The builder has accompanied the build with a very informative description of the event, which I encourage more curious readers to explore.
The diorama features many interesting techniques and ideas, with high quality rocks and unique overgrowth. Coupling that with elegant architecture and a gorgeous Elven ship, John has brought a slice of elven history to life.

Saw Gerrera’s guerrillas snatch some kyber crystals

The Jedha ambush scene in Rogue One has proven to be a popular subject for LEGO Star Wars builders, with some excellent scenes by builders such as Dunedain98 and Graham Gidman. Now, German builder Boba-1980 has built a rather substantial version of this pivotal scene, with uniquely “Star Wars-y” buildings surrounding the action in the square itself.

My favorite building is the one left of the arch with the balcony, populated by some ill-fated partisans. The builder has achieved the curve of the balconies by combining 1×1 round bricks with regular bricks.

There are realistic details throughout the diorama, including inset sections of walls that look like sections of plaster have flaked off in the ancient city.

To the edge of the universe and back. Endure and survive.

While it’s always going to be hard to top the massive 20,000-brick diorama of The Last of Us by Tim Schwalfenberg that we featured earlier this year, the post-apocalyptic video game is so full of atmosphere that I’m glad to see other LEGO builders tackle the haunting game. Christophe captures the protagonists as they approach a dilapidated building. Foliage cascades from an upper floor, with broken glass hanging from windows. My favorite detail is the air conditioning unit on the second floor.

I do wonder what kind of interior Christophe has included in his build, because one of the only shots other than the one above is of Ellie’s guitar sitting silent in an empty room.

Rural beauty in the shape of a lumber mill

Following up his creation of a decaying wall, Jonathan Svenning brings us a medieval sawmill in a beautiful natural setting. The style is quite different from the previous build, with the fewer textures and a larger piece of scenery, and there is a lot to look at throughout the build. The main building utilizes many colours to mix into a realistic weathered texture.

What sells it for me though, is the landscaping. Jonathan has used a unique technique of angled plates for meandering water, as well as some interesting solutions for trees, particularly the sand green ones in front of the buildings.