True to its name, Art of the Brick is a massive exhibition with exciting Lego-themed art pieces and installations to explore. Located in the Singapore Expo, this exhibition promises a wide range of pieces for you to examine and voice your opinions on, since you’re such an expert.
While art may not particularly be your thing, there’s no way Lego hasn’t weaselled its way into your list of hobbies at least once in your lifetime. So unless you’re a busy night-stalking, crime-fighting vigilante, heavy metal rapping machine, like Lego Batman is, head on over to Art of the Brick and uncover these pieces that will surely prompt your imagination.
With pieces, ranging from classic art to 3-D displays, it’s safe to say that this exhibition certainly lives up to its much-deserved hype.
At this enormous display, award-winning contemporary artist, Nathan Sawaya showcases his Lego expertise transforming over one million Lego bricks into more than 90 sculptures.
Art of the Brick will house over 10-themed rooms, with highlights including a 6m-long T-Rex skeleton, recreations of classic paintings, including the Mona Lisa and re-imaginations of mediaeval structures, like David by Michelangelo. Stroll through each room and examine these art pieces along with massive installations, like the Pink Installation, that are both visually aesthetic and interactive.
Excitingly, this exhibit is also featured in CNN’s list of “Must-See” exhibitions. With light-hearted descriptions of each piece, this exhibit allows its guests to fully immerse themselves in the Lego artistic world. In other words, much like the Lego movie’s Emmet so wisely put it, everything is awesome.
Admission:
Pro-tip: The first 1,000 ticket buyers will receive an exclusive 20% early-bird discount.
As you stroll through the first room, you’ll find yourself appreciating artwork from almost all corners of the field, including philosophical approaches and instagram-worthy pieces. Peace by pieces and Ideas are just two amongst the many interesting works of art with the former being made of recycled bricks.
This section adorns tons of sculptures with descriptors, so you don’t confidently come to the wrong conclusions, like you did in your O-levels.
Personally speaking, the Pop-Up Book was the most eye-catching with its massive brick count of 19,822. A short poem that is wrapped up with a beautiful moral of the story – no spoilers, don’t worry – adorns the sculpture making it all the more, an interesting piece. For picky readers, consider yourself humbled, since you most certainly won’t be able to judge this book by its cover.
Yellow is one of Nathan Sawaya’s most well-known pieces, perhaps because you can look how they shine for you. In all seriousness, there’s an almost entrancing thrill that comes with viewing this sculpture because of the various meanings you can draw from this intense piece.
Or, like the artist explains in the description, looking at yellow guts spilling onto the floor is a pretty darn cool sight to witness.
As you make your way into the exhibit, don’t be too surprised when you reach the skull-themed room. While we found this to be a less exciting portion of the exhibit, the whopping 5 skulls with its intricate detail and different colours is still an impressive feat to witness.
True Marvel geeks would stare down the red skull and be able to point out the uncanny resemblance to Red Skull from Captain America: The First Avenger. Ah, Marvel phase 1, you will be missed.
This installation has a hyperfocus on the deep complexities that come with being a human being. These 3-D structures will definitely tug at your heartstrings with its sentimental approach.
In the Past Masters installation, life-sized sculptures of Augustus Of Prima Porta, David and Venus De Milo are marvels that make this exhibition a worthy visit. With these massive brick replicas, you can proudly say you’ve already gawked at these classic statues of historical importance – after reading the informative descriptors, of course.
In fact, before you leave the room, you can indeed claim that you came, saw and conquered, much like our beloved Julius Caesar did. Yes, it’s the wrong Caesar, but the spirit remains the same.
The Kiss is another massive 3-D display portraying a couple wrapped in a warm embrace. There’s truly nothing more humbling than viewing Legos with a better love life than you, is there?
Once you’ve educated yourself through the fun and much-needed history lesson, head on over to the next section, housing re-imagined exhibits of classic paintings.
Classics like The Mona Lisa, Starry Night, Girls With The Pearl Earring, and The Second Chinese Horse are just few amongst the many exhibits to examine. Bearing an uncanny resemblance to the originals, it’s hard not to feel tempted to try your own hand at this modern artform.
The artist continues to impress with this massive installation of a swimmer mid-stroke.
In Pieces is a fascinatingly themed room with more light-hearted pieces that are picture-worthy. Possibly the most striking piece was the dress, considering its intricate detail and obvious display of artistic skill.
Grab your friends who are Jurassic Park fans and geek out over this 6-metre long T-Rex Skeleton structure. This massive structure will undoubtedly be a fascinating sight to behold for kiddos and adults alike, being one of the many key highlights of this exhibition. Don’t worry, unlike the movie franchise, this dinosaur won’t try to eat you alive. Hopefully.
While this may be controversial, let’s be honest, most of us had more fun watching Barbie during the Barbenheimer era. Pay homage to the – better – movie in the form of this exhibition’s Pink Installation, because every night is girls’ night. Click cute pictures with your kiddos or with bae, keeping in mind of course, he’s just Ken.
As you finally make your way to the end of the exhibit, be prepared for your jaw to drop with this massive display adorning structures of hands reaching out to suspended Lego figures. While it’s open to interpretation, true intellectuals would admit it reminds them of their first swim without a lifejacket – drowning in an abyss at the swimming complex near your neighbourhood.
With your newfound inspiration, head on over to the interactive play area with your kiddos and let them unleash their creativity.
There’s also a gift shop to purchase Lego-themed, fun items, like a massive Harry Potter themed Lego set.
By the end of this incredible exhibit, you can successfully say you are very much a connoisseur of art, indeed. Considering the incredible amount of intricate detail, these re-imagined exhibits certainly live up to the hype of their original artworks.
With numerous pieces to explore, this breathtaking display will undoubtedly allow you to immerse yourself fully into the world of Lego – but in a totally acceptable adult-like way.
Date: 31st August 2024 onwards, for a limited time
Time: Mon-Thurs 11am-9pm (last entry at 8pm) | Fri & Sat 10am-10pm (last entry at 9pm) | Sun 10am-9pm (last entry at 8pm) (Closed on Tuesdays)
Venue: 9 Somapah Road, Hall 8B, Singapore Expo, Singapore 487370
Photography by Hui Wen Chan.
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