LEGO builder Paul Vermeesch comes out of a year-long hiatus to deliver a beautiful scene inspired by the works of Aaron Becker. Becker illustrated three books known collectively as The Journey trilogy, filled with beautiful images but no words. The protagonist travels about a fantasy world armed with a piece of red chalk. With it, she creates various modes of transportation colored red which stand in stark contrast to the dream-like colors of the rest of the illustrations. Paul has captured the feeling of the books beautifully in LEGO, using a limited, earthy color palette and a single red canoe.

One of the things I love about this model is how open, airy and light the whole thing feels. Everything in the scene seems tall and spindly. The building is a fairly simple structure adorned with lovely architectural details including the green half dome at the top. The landscaping is a great combination of sideways building and interesting flora. The tall, thin mushrooms dot the landscape which features some really fantastic trees made from brown flex-tubes, 1×1 round bricks, and olive green leaves. I particularly like the detail of the flags strung up between them on the right.

I’ve seen a lot of treatments of waterfalls, but this one is a bit different. I love the choice to use smooth bricks for the water and the 1×2 clear plates as the foam. It’s a wonderful bit of contrast that adds to the illustrated quality of the piece. In keeping with Becker’s original style, the central focus is the red canoe. Aboard the boat, the sailor looks quite happy even as he’s reaching the edge of the falls. At least it’s not a long drop.