Picture this: you find a single LEGO multifaceted hemisphere piece (also known as an insect eye) lying around in your collection. What can you build from there? Some might opt for a giant fly or a spaceship. But if you’re alanboar, the answer is Dutch Master Johannes Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring. The insect eye forms the titular earring, which draws the eye to the center of the painting, but the rest of Vermeer’s masterpiece has also been faithfully recreated here—including the expressive eyes, the shadow on the face and clothing, the texture under the head-wrap, and the gradient on the hair. Also noteworthy is the choice of the ornate railing piece to create the scrollwork in the frame. I like to think Vermeer himself would be proud. The post Where Dutch mastery and LEGO artistry meet appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Ryan Kunz

This three-building LEGO village scene by Daniël de Wit has lots of fun details. A fence made from long rubber hoses keeps a pair of LEGO animals in their pen. And some lovely stained-glass windows in the small church are born of transparent red and green elements and some studs-not-on-top technique. Vines can be seen growing up the side of that house in front, which seems to have caught the eye of a nearby goat. The slight angle of the church leads the eye to some sort of confrontation on the path… maybe this knight has been racking up a hefty tab at the local watering hole. The post A small LEGO village that’s big on action appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Daniel

If you need some LEGO to hang on your wall, look no further than this build by Ethen T! First I want to shout out how Ethen has found the perfect frame to match the dimensions of LEGO bricks. the 1×2 plates and jumpers tile the frame perfectly and give a textured background for the star of the show. Speaking of texture, here’s a lot of 1×1 corner tiles in this build! In addition to the tiles, Ethen has used plenty of organic LEGO pieces to add interest to the build. There’s plenty of flowers of three different types sprinkled throughout the petals and the stem. Considering this is a rose, Ethen has also fittingly added heart tiles to the mix as well. Now for the all important question: would you rather step on a LEGO brick or the thorn of a rose? The post A rose that’s as pretty as...

LEGO pets don’t shed, smell, or trigger allergies, so its only natural that more and more households will replace living pets with brick-build friends, just as we have with our botanicals. Hot on the heels of the LEGO Tuxedo Cat, builder LEGO 7 offers up a feline pair who purr-fectly capture the housecat’s ability to assume liquid form. While small and stylized these cats punch above their weight in personality. Meanwhile, Ian Hou (DOGOD Brick Design) makes fetch happen with a a dynamic doggo in motion. I can practically smell the drool on that tennis ball. Ian is a prolific animal builder who again manages to model realistic anatomy while keeping the charm of the LEGO brick front and center. Whether you’re a dog person or a cat fancier, we’re all winners today! The post Cats vs dog in a LEGO competition of cuteness appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original...

When building microscale, a certain eye is needed to find unusual uses of LEGO elements designed for a larger scale. Uncharted Fabrications demonstrates this with their masterful use of minifigure accessories in this ancient city nested among waterfalls and rocks. From the teapots used as gates to coffee mugs “holding” up the main angled roof to various bowls turned domed roofs, this build is packed with expert-level part usage. The rockwork which serves as a backdrop is also quite nice. Building with studs in multiple directions and a variety of curved elements, the terrain is almost as interesting as the city. The post Microscale LEGO beacon of civilization appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Daniel