Terri Dunbar-Curran
ENDLESS hours are spent raking through hundreds of bright plastic bricks, looking for the perfect pieces to complete wild creations, only to dismantle them and take off in a new direction soon afterwards.
Whether you followed the given instructions meticulously or let your imagination take flight – the love of Lego is something that never truly leaves you, even as you venture into adulthood. And those who grew up with the simple building toys are in turn ensuring their children do the same, or have even started collecting again as adults.
Needless to say, it won’t just be little builders flocking to Nathan Sawaya’s Art of the Brick exhibition at the V&A’s Watershed Exhibition centre from today until February 28. Fans of all ages will be scrabbling for tickets to view some 70 of the US artist’s Lego sculptures.
Look out for his T-Rex skeleton which is built from 80 000 Lego bricks and is over six metres long.
Also on display will be his most popular piece Yellow, and his brick versions of Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, Van Gogh’s Starry Night and the Venus de Milo.
Sawaya’s passion for the plastic blocks started when he was young. “My parents were always encouraging activities that used creativity, such as drawing and painting,” he says.
“When I was five years old I got my first Lego set and started building immediately. Later in life, I rediscovered Lego not as a toy, but as an art medium.”
He explains that several years ago, while practicing corporate law in New York City, he would come home from a long day at the office and need a creative outlet. “Sometimes this meant writing, sometimes drawing and sometimes even sculpting,” he says. “I had sculpted out of more traditional materials like clay and wire, but the decided to experiment with this toy from my childhood. I started creating large scale sculptures out of Lego bricks.”
He soon decided to set up a website, www.brickartist.com, to showcase his works in a virtual gallery. “The day my website crashed from too many hits, I realized it was time to make a change, so I left the law firm to become a full time artist.”
His creative process varies from project to project. “Some involve tinkering, but the majority require planning. I sketch out the ideas for my works before I start building them,” he explains.
And each piece comes with its own challenges, whether it’s getting the look just right, or managing to convey a certain message through a particular piece of art.
“And sometimes it is challenging just because of the engineering involved. The Dinosaur Skeleton in The Art of the Brick is a good example of a challenging piece. The size alone made for a difficult project.” Logistics for an exhibition of this nature must also be quite daunting, and the question on most fans lips is “does he use glue?”
The answer is yes. Sawaya works with a team of people who help to coordinate the logistics of transporting the works around the world, and gluing the sculptures means that they can travel fully assembled, for the most part.
In addition to being an artist, Sawaya also builds sets from time to time, although he doesn’t have a particular favourite, as there’s always something new to build.
With more than 2.5 million bricks in his collection, he keeps them in his studios in New York and Los Angeles.
In addition to his exhibition pieces, Sawaya also takes commissions, but does he still find time to just have fun, for himself? “Everyday is play. A lot of the sculptures that are part of the exhibition came from play. I enjoy the process of creating art, so it all feels like play to me.”
He hopes that visitors to The Art of the Brick, both young and old, experience some of the excitement he does while creating. “I want people to feel inspired to go create on their own!”
l Tickets: R140, or R95 for children, 0861 915 8000, www.theartofthebricksa.co.za