Legos are toys, but they inspire incredible creations. LEGO artists make use of tiny plastic bricks to design everything from robots to architecture. Even the company’s engineers design new elements that allow builders to create more intricate models. Erik Varszegi is a Master Builder at the Lego Group, Billund, Denmark. He came up with a new element for this year’s model, the curved slope. It lets Lego users create more slanted shapes while still staying within the company’s strict color palette. The slopes can be used to create more dynamic shapes, such as a curving staircase.
While some Lego designs are the creations of professional designers, other designs are the result of the well-known Lego Ideas set-design program. The Ideas line gives anyone the chance to create a set, and then get it built, granting fame and a percentage of sales to designers who can convince 10,000 peers that their creation is worthy enough to go into production. It’s no surprise that most elaborate and impressive sets typically garner the most popularity — particularly when they include iconic scenes or characters from TV, movies or from real life.
Two space icons are among the top Lego models of the space shuttle Discovery and Hubble Telescope. NASA shuttle Discovery and the Hubble Telescope model. Each telescope comes with a plaque for display and a miniature Lego version of the original inventor. Other impressive models include a framed Rainbow and a Steampunk dragon, and a model of Westminster Palace.