Tag Archives: Eero Okkonen

Finnish builder Eero Okkonen belongs in the pantheon of great builders. His innovative models mix System, Bionicle, and Constraction parts in mind-bending ways to create expressive characters, whether from beloved books and games or fully sprung from Eero’s imagination. Eero’s work has been showcased in the LEGO House Masterpiece Gallery, and he’s been a regular contributor to New Elementary, putting new parts through their paces and giving an AFOL perspective on new sets. Eero has been documenting his builds on the Cyclopic Bricks blog since 2012, allowing his journey as a builder to inspire countless others.

Alias: Pate-Keetongu

Take a country break in this art-nouveau villa

So you’ve been into town, you’ve visited the LEGO bank that Eero Okkonen built, and now you feel like you need a bit of a break from the hustle and bustle of city life. Luckily, Eero has you sorted for accommodation there too! Why not head down to Villa Mauski for a short stay? It’s just as art-nouveau, but with all the peace and quiet the Nordic forests do so well. You don’t even need to chop wood for the fire, the wood shelter is already full of 1×4 arch pieces for that!

Round the back, you’ve got a slice of forest to call your own in case you do need more wood. But those trees are so pretty, it would seema waste to chop them down! There are a lot of good uses of the so-called macaroni tube here. As in Eero’s previous architectural build, they’re used as a motif on the villa’s archway, but they’re also in the smoke and in the trees. You know, maybe just a short stay is not long enough to spend in Villa Mauski!

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A brick-built lesson in Finnish architecture

You probably know Finland for a few things: sauna, northern lights, rally drivers, and Eero Okkonen. What you might not know is its propensity for excellent art nouveau architecture. And what better way to show that than with Eero’s fantastic, and enormous, model dubbed the Tampereen Pankki! Eero might be better known for his character models, but he’s clearly a dab hand at LEGO architecture too. This doesn’t depict a specific building, rather it’s an amalgamation of a few different bank buildings in Eero’s hometown of Tampere (hence Tampereen Pankki = Bank of Tampere). See, you’re even learning some Finnish thanks to this build!

Click to see inside!

In the running for the Bio-Cup, literally

Some people record themselves while exercising so they can check their form. But LEGO builder and TBB-regular Eero Okkonen thinks it’s better to mind meld with your cyber avatar before heading out for a jog instead. In a bit of Bio-Cup mastery, these figures each display such astounding comprehension of the human form. The large-size avatar features beautiful angles, and not only those achieved by the use of the flexible tubing. For instance, the articulation in the feet is a work of art, differentiating the flex of each shoe to accurately match a runner’s gait. But the normal-size runner is no slouch, employing an interesting technique to sculpt and pose the arms at right angles.

Bartering in Bionicle

If it wasn’t clear from my past posts on Eero Okkonen, I am a huge fan of his LEGO character designs. But he’s really outdone himself with this entry into Round 1 of the 2023 Bio-Cup. Depicting a pair of traveling merchants and their packbeast, the trio immediately reminds me of the Jawas roving over the deserts of Tatooine in Star Wars. And despite their different coloration, I love the clear anatomical link between the two traders in the general shapes of their arms and legs. But nothing can beat the gaping maw of their companion, fashioned from a pair of Skirmix heads.

Adding Dawson to the Circle

The music scene is filled with countless artists, so deep cuts that overlap LEGO and eclectic artists can be rare. Builder Eero Okkonen recently completed this model of singer-songwriter Richard Dawson to update his past display of the band Circle. It’s no surprise Eero says he had an easy time going about this build, as the black uniform allowed for a great piece selection to maintain uniformity. The main issues he faced were building Richard’s face and hair, which come across delightfully in the final product. Dawson often works his voice from the top to bottom of his range in songs, so it’s wonderful that the models mouth seems to be caught mid-lyric. Other details such as the microphone, guitar, and speaker all add to the immersion of the scene. The only thing I can’t get passed are the skeleton arms as fingers because they just make me think Richard has more little hands at the fingertips. I’m disturbed but curious as to how it would help his guitar playing.

As a personal fan of Richard Dawson myself, this was a delightfully unexpected model to see. Plenty of builders have been covering famous musical artists over the last year, mostly mainstream or rock. This model has me curious about Circle, and pleased at how the process of discovering new music can be just as odd as your taste in tunes.

A character that sticks with you

I’ve absolutely fallen in love with the new adhesive 8×8 plate available in some LEGO Dots sets. And while I haven’t been able to work it into one of my own builds yet, Eero Okkonen puts the new part to work in this swinging character suspended from the underside of a bookshelf. The sturdy swing design is impressive, not once relying on an unstable stud/antistud connection for the attached chains. And the character’s winged boots are dynamite, taking full advantage of a build without a bottom. But my favorite bit of the design has got to be her flowered sleeves. Each dark pink bloom pops against the jacket’s black background.

A computerized agglomeration of Okkonen constructions

When taking averages of quantitative values, the math is quite easy. But qualitative averaging between LEGO characters is a feat that requires a computer, for sure! So esteemed character concoctor Eero Okkonen collaborated with Looking Glass V1.4 AI to come up with this ostentatious “Admiral” design based on an array of his prior anthropomorphic builds. And I’m really digging the cyberpunk aspects of the work! The imbalance between the legs immediately draws the eye: one clad in only an elaborate shin guard, the other draped in a dark blue parachute pant leg. The gold and red highlights of the figure’s upper body really pop, coming to an apex with some dynamite headgear. But be sure not to miss the beautiful golden sword at its hip. Held in a black sheath, the design is simple, yet immediately recognizable and perfect for the digital officer.

One stylish looking character with great uses of LEGO cloth pieces

This regal character, created by Eero Okkonen, has an awesome aesthetic. Several cloth pieces from the Volkswagen T2 Camper Van set, are included in this build, mainly the orange roof section (used for the turban) and the curtains (representing frills at the shoulders). The dark red and brown colours of the outfit contrast nicely against the vivid white at the gloves and legs. The top of the boots feature Belville saddle pieces which creates realistic looking textures. Eero has a wonderful talent for constructing fascinating characters with this model being another prime example of his inventive techniques.

The hell-ridin’ Hemogoblin within all of us

If my Instagram stream is any indicator, anyone with a plunging neckline or pimples to pop can be an internet influencer. But it takes a special kind of genius to be as influential as LEGO builder Eero Okkonen. With his amazing characters, he has most certainly influenced dozens of other builders, all without resorting to even a hint of cleavage. Here we see Hemogoblin, who hauls oxygen along the Aorta Highway on his badass dirtbike. Oh, and it turns out he lives inside each of us and is actually helpful. So, yeah. To see this genius at work, check out our Eero Okkonen archives; the guy is super-prolific and you won’t be disappointed. As for me, I haven’t built anything in a while and have to resort to cheap, lurid gimmicks to hold any shred of influence I may still have. Time for me to put on a skimpy top, pop some zits and watch the profits roll in!

A LEGO builder in his element

If there’s anyone I trust to build a spirit consisting of the five elemental forces, it’s got to be Eero Okkonen. I mean, after all, the dude writes for a LEGO blog called New Elementary, so he’s got to be an expert! And, in typical “Eero” fashion, earth, wind, fire, water, and void aren’t the only elements excellently displayed here. That bending trunk of Bionicle bits looks so organic, especially in contrast to the stone corners of the nearby lantern. And I absolutely love the plating used for the warrior’s kusazuri, as well as the shaping of their hair. It seems very similar to the design for “Wind” within the kami, strands snaking down onto armored shoulders. The largely grayscale nature of the build helps to make all the colors pop out, even more, drawing the eye to the orange of the spirit, the pink flowers of the tree, and the gold worn by the warrior.

A lighthouse that warns of more than rocks

I think it would be best to admire this beautiful LEGO BioCup 2022 build by Eero Okkonen from afar. After all, kaiju can be very dangerous up-close. The moth monster is absolutely the star of the show here, with so much intricate feathering on its legs, abdomen, and antennae. But the lighthouse is no slouch either, with brilliant details like the little gray staircase leading up to its door. I also especially like the use of the Constraction torso pieces in white as rocks at the base of the structure.

A personified plant ponders piece potential

Builder Eero Okkonen taps into something that I think most LEGO fans can relate to: looking for a new way to use an old piece. Where Eero might differ from those of you reading this is in depicting that struggle as a tree. But this wonderful self-portrait turns a few pieces upside down to deliver a wonderful image of an Ent-like being confounded by a gear. It’s no surprise Eero’s self-portrait would be a fantasy creature looking for new parts usage. Check out our Eero Okkonen archives for a look at his past builds, and you’ll know what I mean.