Tag Archives: Landscape

Doorway to the imagination

Home to “a civilization spoken of in legend and lore”, Gareth Gidman’s recent LEGO creation “The Door to the Hidden City” presents a scene that conjures more questions than answers. Drawing inspiration from the OG masters of fantasy, Gareth started this build “without having a specific purpose in mind, which made the build process much more relaxing and free flowing.”

Perhaps being in the zone is how he achieved such natural-looking stone and snow forms. Though there are certainly some deliberate details of note, like the subtle color variation giving depth to the icy water, and, given the choice between four different verdant shades that the 3×4 Plant Leaves LEGO element has come in, the use of Sand Green reinforces the chilly tone. I also love how the tooled parts of the rock face – the light bluish gray stairs, arch, and columns – are differentiated from the natural stone. Gareth says he’s “really pleased with how the texturing and the composition of the model turned out”… and for good reason!

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Collaborative LEGO builds lead to the best views

With the powers of eight LEGO builders are combined, some truly spectacular creations can come into being. For instance, the amazing team of jnj_bricks, Eli Willsea, Carter Witz, Joel Tyer, Micah Beideman, Roanoke Handybuck, Davis Brown, and J2_Bricks all came together to show Omar a world worth exploring. There is some phenomenal forced perspective at play, with darling rockwork, bridgework, and tower-work(?) all coming together into something magical. I am just wishing that Omar will take me along on his next voyage.

Rocco’s capital LEGO build of Capitol Hill is a 36,800 piece marvel

“Here, sir, the people govern.” So said Alexander Hamilton as engraved in the US Capitol in Washington DC. Chances are you’ve seen the Capitol in LEGO before, perhaps in the official release from the LEGO Architecture line, but you’ve never seen it like this. Assembled here from over 36,800 LEGO bricks over four months, Rocco Buttliere‘s model of the Capitol is a masterclass in microscale landscaping and a breathtaking tribute to the heart of American democracy.

To differentiate from past builds of the landmark, Rocco chose to recreate the entire 100-acre grounds of the Capitol Campus, which includes the Capitol, Reflection Pool, Ulysses S. Grant Memorial, Botanic Garden, Capitol Steps, visitor center, and tree-lined paths. As with all of Rocco’s creations, the model is built at 1:650 scale, which posed unique challenges in capturing the appropriate detail. Some of Rocco’s solutions used delightfully surprising parts, such as fork facades, microphone lamps, and jewel fountains.

Take a stroll down the Capitol Steps with us to view the rest of Rocco’s jaw-dropping model!

A LEGO sword bearer on a field of blades

The LEGO blades of grass pale in comparison to the massive claymore wielded by this turquoise-and-white mech by Psyro TtunTomato. I’m pretty sure this build utilizes nearly every two stud-long curved slope, giving the armor plating so many interesting facets. This is contrasted nicely with the sleek flow of the sword’s edges. The turquoise and gold detailing is excellent on the white background, and I love the little hints of trans-light green that bring the palette together. But the thing that makes this creation stand out from your average mech is the exquisite background. That verdant plain full of katana-constructed grass is a genius presentation of a tough-to-use part (when not used as a minifigure weapon).

I could Jabba on about this one all day...

There are LEGO pieces that are very much a one-trick pony, those pieces so unique that you’d be hard-pressed to use them any other way. It was then great to come across this fantastic build by Andreas Lenander

Using the Jabba figure as a base, Andreas has fashioned a magnificent microscale palace set amongst rolling hills and cloudy mountains. The detail in this palatial build is brilliant and is reminiscent of St Basil’s Cathedral with its colourful spires reaching for the sky. Moving away from the palace, the plateau this building sits upon is decorated with well-placed (and balanced!) surrounding vegetation. The figures printing adds additional detail to the grassy terrain it portrays along with the alien head adding further detail here moving away from this inspired us of Jabba, the Swedish Lego Masters alumni, has used a wealth of parts to add subtle detail that is to be found and enjoyed here.
Now, I’m off to brush off my Galidor pieces to see what I can make from this…

A scenic path to a forest retreat

Builder Salt_city_bricks gives us a lovely LEGO retreat in a peaceful forest. Two travelers make their way home after an adventurous walk through the forest. They cross a cute little bridge that uses headlight bricks, open studs, and flex tubing for its curvature. Vibrant trees and flowers surround the house on the hill and the babbling brook. There’s not a bit of space left unused on the forest floor! It’s full of plant life, even growing up the sides of the hill to wreath around the multi-story house. The color blocking breaks the scene up into smaller areas to explore.

Take a closer look at the trees and flowers

Speeding through the desert

This high speed LEGO speeder bike by Charlie screams fast! Bright red and sleek, the bike stands out from the rocky desert landscape below. Not that you would be able to see the landscape going at these speeds! While it doesn’t use a lot of parts, they are all well-chosen and flow together nicely. I especially like the use of the white rubber bands as pin striping while also acting as structure. The rocky ground below is also a wonderful combination of brick-built chunks and loose parts which give a very organic feel and accentuates the bike well. I’m always a fan of terrain to complete and build and this does a great job!

Checkpoint reached! Game saved.

The best feeling after finally beating that tough level is to bask in the peaceful tranquility of the save location. Tom Loftus recreates this feeling with this wonderful LEGO game checkpoint. Some great techniques going on here — the fluffy floating clouds and the little three wheeled companion rover are superb. The gems scattered around are a great touch and I admire the dedication it must have taken to balance all of those around the build. The inspiration for this build is a brand new 5×5 curved plate, used here upside down around the central tower.

Check out more interesting uses of this new part from our friends over at New Elementary. Now onto the next challenge!

At the top of the mountain

LEGO builder Jake Hansen brings us a beautiful mountaintop pagoda. His color palette is unique and fits together effortlessly. The use of the candle element in bright green as bamboo stalks works well, and the lavender foliage on the tree contrasts nicely with the teal roof on the pagoda. The simplicity of the large slopes and curves in light bluish grey to create the boulders is a refreshingly clean take on rock work. There are plenty of interesting building techniques used in the pagoda itself as well, including the brick-built door and the curved roofline.

Wizard and the genie

LEGO artist Bart De Dobbelaer has created a new fantasy masterpiece. This overgrown wizard’s tower overlooking a genie’s resting place is full of story and creative part usage. The pink water surface is created using a play mat from this Clikits set. The tower peaks are a wonderful usage of this Duplo engine element! The foliage is exceptional and really ties the whole creation together. Bart is known for his unique and creative fantasy creations and this is no exception! And if you have the time, check out the story he wrote to accompany the build.

The return of LEGO Elves?

I wish.
That’s why I (Mansur “Waffles” Soeleman) along with my friend Tom Loftus decided to take a break from our usual spaceships and build something fantastical. Our usual greys became pinks and lavenders, our usual mechanical greebling became wild, organic foliage. Tom wanted to build a tree, I wanted to replicate some of Scotland’s coastal cliffs. Combined with recent plants in wild colours and the release of the Acorn Boy and Night Protector in the recent Collectable Minifigure Series, our collab build became an homage to LEGO Elves.

We are fans of the bygone LEGO Elves theme which ran from 2015 to 2018. Its signature look was bright colours, cute dragons, and wonderful characters with elemental powers and matching outfits, albeit they were the less favourable minidolls. In short, it was a Tolkien-esque fantasy version of LEGO Friends. Despite there being an established lore (which I admit I’m unfamiliar with), Tom and I decided to make something original, but with a similar aesthetic.

Just your typical day surfing the hydrothermal acid pool

“Hydrothermal”, “acid”, and “pool” are three words that give me the willies. I don’t love them singularly but when combined it invokes a unique feeling of “oh, hell no”! For not the first time, The Brothers Brick alumn and world-renowned LEGO builder Nannan Zhang has me in awe and just a bit unsettled with this new creation. He doesn’t tell us much other than “Running errands on My’laar pays well if you don’t fall in a hydrothermal acid pool”. Nope, too much risk for me! I’d rather be an armchair adventurer with menial pay, thank you very much! Still, though, the bubbling marsh and that unnatural color are admittedly quite striking. I can only imagine the molecular makeup of any plant life that can exist there without withering away. Check out why Nannan Zhang is among the most interesting LEGO builders on this planet or otherwise.