Tag Archives: Monochrome

Rainbow squadron, standing by!

It’s getting harder and harder to keep track of the squadron colours in Star Wars. First it was just Red and Gold, then Green came along in Return of the Jedi, Blue appeared – and disappeared – in Rogue One… And that’s before we even get to LEGO-specific ones like Teal Squadron. Let’s just get them all out of the way at once, shall we? Over on Instagram, Mark (lego_coffee) has brought together as many colours as he can to craft some miniature monochrome x-wings. And by LEGO’s official colours naming scheme, we have Mid-Stone Gray Squadron, Flame Yellowish Orange Squadron, Reddish Brown Squadron, Bright Purple Squadron… The only criticism I can make is that such names don’t exactly roll off the tongue!

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50 shades of LEGO fun

Back in 2021, we featured an amazing set of monochrome habitats from Caz Mockett featuring every color brick available at the time. As LEGO continutes to introduce new colors, the potential spectrum of habitats has grown since then. This time builder Dana Knudson has accepted the nigh-impossible mission of creating a minifig habitat using only parts from a single LEGO color, this time hitting a total of 50 unique hues. Neon yellow and coral are some of the newly possible configurations that Dana includes.

Monochrome habitats like these are such a fun way to explore the relationship between color and shape in LEGO’s vast catalog of elements. While some colors offer a vast array of options, other colors, can be a challenge to build with. Some, like sand red, can be quite expensive to source. But the results are spectacular. And seeing how different builders create their own little scene from those constraints is inspiring.

In addition to playing with monochrome builds, Dana also created habitats celebrating 40 years of LEGO Space themes that you’ll enjoy getting lost in.

What color do you dream in?

Inspired by the incredible sci-fi art of Pascal Blanché, builder Luka presents a stylized LEGO scene that looks equally at home in a Love Death & Robots segment or an Eiffel 65 video. When it comes to LEGO elements, basic blue is not exactly a difficult color to come by so Luka had plenty to choose from, but achieving this build’s biomechanical look saw the application of elements as diverse as an Aircraft Fuselage Aft Section, a Playground Slide, and 3×3 Elbow Bricks (so far only found in LEGO Dreamzzz sets – appropriate!) Of the build process, Luka describes wanting “to play around with brick built shadows and color contrast,” which I think was executed beautifully, though Luka also mentions feeling a lack of a violet color that would have added to the already impressive gradients and light-play.

Luka joined The LEGO Group as an official model designer at the end of 2024. We can’t wait to see what sets he’ll have a hand in. Congratulations, Luka!

Decapo-dacious

Adding to an already impressive biomechanical menagerie, this cracking-good Coconut Crab creation by Mitsuru Nikaido bears all this talented LEGO builder’s hallmarks. Chiefly, their signature monochrome style, and absolutely nailing the character of the subject.

This latest offering takes full advantage of a variety of new-ish angled and wedge shaped LEGO tile elements, used to great effect by a talented builder with an unfailing eye for proportion and detail.
If carcinization (look it up) really is the ultimate destiny for life on earth, let’s all hope at least it comes with this much style.

LEGO chess pieces ready for war

There are no shades of grey on the battlefield of chess — only black and white. Builder Herbert Lee explores that stark contrast with a pair of opposing pieces that are as commanding as they are elegant. The White Queen is almost entirely monochrome, with only black contrast for the eyes and hidden mixel joints to allow for regal posing. Herbert mixes soft, rounded parts for the queen’s dress with sharp horns and egg shells that should make you think twice before accepting her gambit.

The Black King is no slouch waiting for his knights and rooks to keep him out of check. Armed with a jagged sword and Kylo Ren’s chiseled abs, he looks ready to pwn a few pawns. I appreciate the asymmetry introduced by a single metallic grey Bionicle chest piece as a pauldron.

Seeing these two pieces, I can’t help but imagine a full board of such characters readying for battle. For more interpretations of the ultimate test of cerebral fitness, see the creme de la creme of the LEGO chess world in our archives, with everything but Yul Brynner.

Note the charisma of the LEGO Chasmosaurus

Blending a mix of System and Technic LEGO elements, this lizard of the Cretaceous Period by VelociJACKtor makes for a striking silhouette clad all in black. When working in a single color, shaping is everything, and JACK applies their palette of pieces perfectly to recreate the massive frill of this ancient beast. The rest of the dino is fleshed out with a combination of slopes and wedge plates, posed thanks to plenty of hinge parts of all varieties. The only pop of color is a bed of white and pink flowers at its feet, only adding to the visage of this shadowy ‘saur.

These monochrome robots are monumental

When I think about unique LEGO creations, I usually picture them in vibrant colors, considering just how many colors LEGO elements come in these days. But like fine art and photography, sometimes using a more limited palette, or choosing to go black and white can introduce interesting design constraints. Builder Mitsuru Nikaido is known for creating stunning mechanical models of animals from around the world, both past and present. but with this recent series, they are taking their LEGO creations into the future.

These two robot companions are full of interesting details like the two different sizes of ski sleds used for the feet, and the revolver used for the digits of the tall skinny fellow. But I think my favorite detail is the top half of the light gray turntable used for the shoulders, hips, and knees. There is another great robot in the series, which looks like it could be the next model from Boston Dynamics, but is surprisingly less creepy.

The Moby Dick of honey bees

I wonder if there is a beekeeper equivalent to Captain Ahab, forever obsessing over one special white honeybee. Whoever that beekeeping Ahab is, they should look no further than this LEGO creation by Christian Lintan. My hunch says once discovered, this monochrome mech will put up a good fight. It might even make Beekeeper Ahab wish they would have pursued something less dangerous, like stamp collecting. I’m loving those Bionicle transparent wings though. If you enjoy LEGO builds with a monochrome palette, be sure to click the little blue link to see what others have done, including at least one entry by Christian.

Paint the world as you see fit

Being an artist has some perks. If you can imagine a world that doesn’t exist, simply invent it through art. As Bob Ross advised, just paint in those happy little trees! That is, in a sense, what First Order Lego has done here in LEGO. With a paint palette and brush in the composition, we see just a hint of color with a Mediterranean-style village at the base of a massive tree. It is just enough to clue us in that this builder is pretty good with color but the real star of the show here is what is not “painted”. Monochrome is notoriously difficult to draw or paint. It relies heavily on texture for great effect and that is what is done here in spades. Hundreds of mini wheels make up the leaves of the tree which creates breathtaking visual effects.

There are even more little houses going up the slope of the trunk that are just like the other ones except “unpainted”. He tells us it was all built-in under two weeks and had won the top prize at Bricking Bavaria, a LEGO convention in Germany. A well-deserved win, in my opinion. Here we see the artist “painting” his world with beautiful happy colors. The closeup makes it clear that the entire sculpture stands on Death Star halves. What brilliant details!

Anansi the trickster and god of all knowledge comes to life in an astounding LEGO sculpture

When I first saw this magnificent LEGO sculpture by Ekow Nimako, I knew it had to be his. The elegant, all-black theme is his trademark. But what I didn’t realize is that this is much more than a beautiful fictitious character. This is Anansi, an important deity in West African mythos. Ekow has a wonderful talent for pulling you in and inspiring you to look further, both literally and figuratively. So I’m here to share the gift of what I learned… and you might want to zoom in.

Click to see more pictures and learn about Anansi

Everything is melting! Also everyone!

The new Everyone is Awesome set is, well, awesome. But inclusivity and cool monochrome minifigures aren’t exactly new ideas. Just ask Andreas Lenander – they’ve been building in those themes for a while now. Andreas has combined earlier builds into a stellar group display that showcases the full range of melty creative possibilities. Out of the group, my favorites are still the black and white builds, even if the stark contrast there doesn’t lean into the more colorful…hold up. Is that Batman I see hiding behind the red waterfall?

Don’t think that Andreas is limited to one thematic style, though. Check out a full range of great builds that we’ve featured in the past!

LEGO 40516 Everyone is Awesome set designer Matthew Ashton in support of inclusivity [News]

LEGO 40516 Everyone is Awesome set was announced just a few days ago. Designed by Matthew Ashton, Vice President of Design at LEGO, it is the first set that directly addresses the LGBTQ+ community.

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