Tag Archives: Michael Jasper

Legendary German LEGO builder of minifig scale furniture, historical figures, and vignettes.

Is it gone?

It’s that time of the year for “new year, new me” declarations, and leaving certain things in the previous year which just ended. Builder Michael Jasper decided to build those sentiments as a small LEGO diorama.

When I think about it, New Years Day hangovers aren’t even that bad. Neither are New Year’s resolutions that no one will keep for more than a week. But that is every year. Things are already different at the start of 2022. Are LEGO Stores in the U.K. increasing the prices of Pick-a-Brick cups by almost 25%? Yeah that’s not exactly a good way to start the year. Newer lockdowns and restrictions? It’s a bit much but we’ve gotten used to them by now. We were all hoping this year will be better than the last, and the one before.

Nevertheless, COVID-19 persisted.

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Why did the penguins cross the road?

To sit on these awesome deck chairs of course! Sometimes an awesome LEGO creation can consist of only one part. This however only happens ever so often. The latest creation by Michael Jasper is a really good example of this. He made three deck chairs accompanied by a little table and a parasol. The deck chairs are made with only one part, the boomerang minifigure utensil. The design is so simple, yet so effective it blows my mind! Michael is an expert when it comes to designing LEGO furniture. And he is not afraid to use whatever piece he can get his hands on as long as it is produced by LEGO. In this picture there is a gear piece hiding. It’s the yellow ring around the parasol dish. It is actually a part of a LEGO watch. All this needs now is a couple of cocktails and we are all set for the summer!

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Schroeder loves Beethoven

Sometimes one doesn’t need a proliferation of parts to make something fun and recognizable as Michael Jasper proves with this clever Peanuts scene. Building small can be tricky, especially when trying to represent characters as iconic as these, but Jasper does an admirable job by employing a variety of clever part combinations.

The Schroeder minifig features his classic striped shirt, and his blonde hair is perfectly coiffed. His beloved tiny piano is a simple but effective little build that pairs nicely with the bust of Beethoven. Snoopy is on hand with his best buddy, the enigmatic Woodstock (represented here with just five parts). The Snoopy build deserves closer inspection with its inspired use of a white saucepan to create the body, and the skeleton legs work great as dog paws. A small but mighty build!

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Getting to the pressing matter at hand

It is not intuitive, but this little article and the whole internet is really a direct consequence of the first press. German builder Michael Jasper recreates this monumental part of his national (and global) history in a build that can fit in one’s hand, and yet packs more detail than many larger builds.

Gutenberg Printing Press

There are not many names that have been so consistently present at the peak of the crop in the online LEGO community over the past decades, but Michael Jasper is surely one of them. Known for using exotic parts in unique ways, he does not disappoint this time either. Can you find the brown 2×2 magnet holder tile and the brown bar with side studs? The cutest detail for me though, is how the bed holding the “letters” slides between two panel pieces. But Michael does not stop there! The tiny press actually has moving parts, as seen in the little story below!

Gutenberg Printing Press

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Life’s a LEGO beach

Michael Jasper has pulled off a difficult trick with this image. I’m not normally a fan of minifigs and models appearing in the natural environment in photos. Having real foliage or objects tends to destroy any impression of scale within the models, making it obvious how small they really are. However, this beach scene is enhanced by the sandy setting. It obviously helps that the beach chair model is a sweet little build, and don’t miss Michael’s inspired parts-usage for the bikini top…

life's a LEGO beach

Edit: This relaxing scene is actually 10 years old, and it happens to be the very first LEGO creation not built by founder Andrew blogged here on The Brothers Brick! We’ll call this post a “classic rewind.”

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Tiny Dortmund is a German gem

Michael Jasper has built an excellent microscale model of his home town Dortmund in a similar style to the new LEGO Cities Architecture range.

Dortmund

Even if you’re unfamiliar with the city itself, you can admire the quality of these tiny creations. The church is a fantastic build for so few bricks, and the coal mine is a lovely little model. But the undoubted star of the show is the Borussia Dortmund stadium where clever parts use delivers an impressive level of detail. The use of “cheesegrater slopes” set at an angle to provide the stadium walls is a particular stroke of genius.

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In Memoriam – Nelson Mandela

Lego builders will find inspiration to build in all manners of sources…even sad days. Michael Jasper has created this simple tribute to one of the world’s most respected statesman.

“It always seems impossible until it is done.” (Nelson Mandela)

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1957 Ford Taunus 17M P2 deLuxe by mijasper

Most of the LEGO models by Michael Jasper (mijasper) that we’ve featured here over the years have highlighted minifigs with perfectly scaled tools, furniture, and other brick-built accessories — every one featuring Michael’s brilliant parts usage (far and above merely “nice“). It’s still wonderful to see Michael build something a bit bigger, if only just. This model of a 1957 Ford Taunus certainly doesn’t suffer from immensity, but Michael still manages to pack it full of detail.

Ford Taunus 17M deLuxe (P2)

The black-and-white color scheme on the car contrasts beautifully with the elderly minifig Michael has included for scale. Of course, no model he builds would be free of NPU — note the brackets in the wheel well and tan windows as seat backs inside the car.

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The Spinning Wheel

It’s hard to find a meaningful way to move on here on our silly little LEGO blog in the face of complex world events. As a former resident of Boston who lived directly on the marathon route, my heart goes out to the city, to all my friends back in Massachusetts, and to the victims and their families — one of whom was an eight-year-old boy. One of the beautiful things we humans do in the face of evil is to refuse to allow it to rule our lives. So, despite the pain and sadness we all must feel, we’re going to move forward today.

During the non-violent campaign for India’s independence, Mohandas Gandhi used the spinning wheel as a symbol of Indian self-sufficiency and resiliency — a positive symbol in the face of evil oppression and cruel violence. Michael Jasper posted this yesterday before the bombings in Boston, but I think it’s a fitting LEGO model to highlight first as we push ahead.

Spinning Wheel

As always, Michael uses LEGO elements in wholly unexpected ways; his spinning wheel includes magnets, bucket handles, robot arms, and Technic chain links.

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Ouch! Quit pulling my beard.

Michael Jasper (mijasper) is no stranger to TBB. His creative uses of odd-ball parts are always elegant examples of what can be done with LEGO. His latest desk makes brilliant use of the printed 1×1 plates from the Minecraft set as well as the new ice cream cone from Friends…not to mention the lipstick usage!

Writing Desk

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So Long And Thanks For All The Fish

Sometimes it’s not the biggest models that make a splash, as Michael Jasper proves with this stunning dolphin sculpture. And, no, I don’t think Michael intended a Hitchhiker’s Guide reference, but that’s what I think of every time I see dolphins.

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A game of ping-pong

Michael Jasper‘s table tennis scene is as usual an inspiration in parts usage. Can you find the ping-pong ball?

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