Tag Archives: Jonah Schultz

Chicago’s Navy Pier, in a LEGO Architecture style

While I may be a LEGO-building Washingtonian now, there was a time when I lived in northern Indiana, South Bend for those playing the home game. And during my four years there, I made plenty of trips to Chicago and its suburbs. One memorable adventure was attending Brickworld in 2013 (my first LEGO convention). But another was the first big post-graduation meet-up with friends from college to see the sights downtown, including the infamous Navy Pier. So, yes, at one time I was one of those 1×1 round tiles in Jonah Schultz’s microscale build, probably one of the lime green ones. The design here is spot-on, with a better translation to microscale than I thought possible. The half-plate stripe just under the warehouse’s roof is spectacular, as is the use of claws and horns to give the appearance of waves on Lake Michigan. But the bit that’s got my jaw on the floor right now is that Ferris wheel made of Minecraft Tridents connected to a pair of 3×3 Technic disks. It’s a technique worthy of the Iron Builder competition for sure!

Old Navy Pier

Slicing at life with a pixilated pitchfork

Confused by the title? Sounds like an impossible task, much like participating in the Iron Builder competition where two LEGO builders try to use a single part as much as they can. And IB gladiator Jonah Schultz has taken a huge stab at using the Minecraft trident in this “slice of life” scene. It contains such ingenious use of the wrong end of the weapon, throwing tons of sand green diamonds all over the place for various fencing and knobs. But don’t miss the drainage grate, composed of the trident’s prongs.

Slice of Life

Wyrms: like dragons, but cuter

Supposedly, the difference between dragons and wyrms (and wyverns, and drakes) lies in the number of limbs they have, and whether they have wings or not. That may be so, but the name “wyrm” just sounds cuter than the others, don’t you think? Maybe that’s why Jonah Schultz refers to this adorable little LEGO guy as a wyrm, even if it technially has too many limbs to be one. That minifigure-leg snout is too cute to belong to a fire-breathing monster! How do we square this particular circle? Maybe Wyrm is its given name? Wyrm the Dragon. Yeah, that sounds fitting! If a little confusing…

The Wyrm's Treasure

Too many garden gnomes? Get the hose!

Experience says that most of the problems encountered in the backyard can be solved with a garden hose. Whether it be watering plants, flooding a rathole, separating two mating cats, or showing a sunbathing neighbor who is boss, a live garden hose can do it all. This LEGO creation built by Jonah Schultz seems to depict an infestation of garden gnomes. Thankfully, he has The Peacekeeper 3000 (as I call mine) in view so we know those pesky gnomes will be scattered soon. This entire scene was built using only 101 parts, too. All parts are well-used here, especially the hose parts. But then again, I’d say that as I often tout my Constitutional Right to bear a garden hose. All that strength, respect, and power; must be what God feels like when he holds a hose!

101 Bricks - Garden Gnome Galore at Autie Gertie's

A soup fit for a king!

Grim things are going down in this kitchen nightmare by Jonah Schultz. The middle scene of a three-part story (you can find the first one here), we can see the malicious chef poisoning soup destined for the king’s table. I love the lighting choices here! It makes the scene feel small, and draws focus to our villain and his pot. All of the excellent details add further to this intimacy. The intricate stonework around the fireplace, the dimly-lit shelves in the back, and even the cute spring onions in the foreground set the stage of a royal kitchen gone awry. I can’t wait to see how this concludes!

The Third Ingredient

Picturing LEGO: Using LEGO bricks to tell a story through photography [Feature]

This week, we have guest writer Jonah Schultz who has been a fan of LEGO since he was 3 years old and became more active in the community again in 2015. He is a student of medieval and modern history and French literature and is very much into photography. He also enjoys learning about other people’s outlook on the hobby and marvels at the diversity, creativity, and warmth of the community.

Storytelling and LEGO are two terms that go very well together, don’t they? Indeed, both the LEGO Group and LEGO enthusiasts have made storytelling a key element to creating with LEGO bricks over the years.

Click to read more