We’ve seen lots of incredible designs made from LEGO bricks lately – from a ten-foot-tall replica of Chicago’s Trump Tower to life-size animals at the Bronx Zoo. But now enthusiasts at home – who don’t have 60,000 LEGO bricks on hand – can construct an impressive feat of architecture. LEGO just released a new model in their architectural series – the iconic Robie House by legendary architect Frank Lloyd Wright. LEGO’s other architectural kits include some of the world’s most important projects, including two Frank Lloyd Wright masterpieces – The Guggenheim Museum and Fallingwater. Now the Frederick C. Robie House – one of Chicago’s gems in Hyde Park – is getting the LEGO treatment. Adam Reed Tucker interpreted the 9,026 square foot home into LEGO blueprints and a model kit containing 2,276 pieces that can be used to construct the 16.25 “ x 4.75” x 7.5” model. The Robie House was the first property to be declared a National Historic Landmark based on its architecture alone, and it is honored with this homage by LEGO.
A collaboration with the Frank Lloyd Wright Preservation Trust museum, the kit also educates the consumer. Each kit includes an exclusive archival history, photographs of the Robie House and Frank Lloyd Wright, and other information about the architectural style of the era. LEGO’s Architectural series was created to inspire aspiring architects, engineers and designers, as well as children of all ages. The Robie House kit retails for $199.« Immediate face plant I generally am a big believer in “walking the walk”, so if I’m going to make students do something, I try to do something similar. Right now, I’m teaching a LEGO freshman seminar (as I’m reminded of daily whenever I navigate to the UMW site. It’s kind of disturbing to see myself staring back at me like that). In that course, students are completing all sorts of LEGO related projects, among them a LEGO review. I’ve had a LEGO Robie House (set #21010) waiting for months to be assembled, and I figured this is a perfect time to put it together and write about it.
So here we are. The Robie House set came out in 2010, and I would argue it may be the reason the Architecture series has become so popular. It is a gorgeous model of a very distinctive house. Some of the other models in the Architecture series, in my opinion, are not a very good representation of the building they emulate. The Eiffel Tower is meh at best, and the Guggenheim is actively awful. LEGO simply can’t show a spiral well at all. LEGO Architecture sets will always have to simplify buildings quite a bit, but that works better with some than with others. Modernist buildings like the Villa Savoye and the Farnsworth House are perfect for LEGO, and so is this house. The Robie House is one of my favorite Frank Lloyd Wright houses: its brickwork, interlocking planes, and deeply overhanging roof are typical of his work. The stained glass in this building is fantastic. Most of all, the horizontality FLW achieved here is truly stunning. All the details add up to, well, the Prairie style.
All in all, this house is definitely worthy of the LEGO Architecture treatment.A Guide to the Most Popular LEGO City Items imageFollowing the popularity and discontinuation of the World City line of products in 2004, LEGO launched its town-based theme known simply as City in 2005. Whereas the original World City system revolved...Read More about A Guide to the Most Popular LEGO City Items Conditions of Use & Sale Lego Architecture is a sub-brand and product range of the Lego construction toy, which aims to “celebrate the past, present and future of architecture through the Lego Brick”.[1] The brand includes a series of Lego sets designed by ‘Architectural Artist’ Adam Reed Tucker, and each contain the pieces and instructions to build a model of a famous architectural building in micro-scale. Adam Reed Tucker earned a degree in architecture at Kansas State University in 1996.[2] While there, he sought a method to join his two passions of art and architecture, and hit upon the idea of using Lego bricks.
From this, he founded Brickstructures, Inc., and began to design and build models of famous landmarks. His work was noticed by the Lego Group, and together they formed a partnership to release some of his models as commercially available Lego sets under the Lego Architecture brand. Sets in the product line contain a premium booklet, that – besides the build instructions – also include various information and pictures of the building itself. By the beginning of 2010, six sets had been released in the range, under two 'series'. Within the 'Landmark Series' are models of the Sears Tower (21000), John Hancock Center (21001), the Empire State Building (21002), and the Seattle Space Needle (21003). Within the 'Architect Series' are models of the Guggenheim Museum (21004) and Fallingwater (21005). In the beginning of July 2010, a seventh set, the White House (21006), was released. An eighth set (21007) was released in November 2010: New York's Rockefeller Center. The ninth set (21009), Farnsworth House (Plano, Illinois), was released in April 2011.
A tenth set (21008), The Burj Khalifa, was released in June 2011. The Willis Tower (21000) was also released in 2011, this kit was a re-issue of the original Sears Tower kit; the only change was the printed tile to reflect the building's renaming. An eleventh and twelfth set, the Robie House (21010) and the Brandenburg Gate (21011) were released in September 2011. In January 2012, it was announced that the next Architecture set would be 21012 Sydney Opera House. The set was released in March 2012. In June 2012, Big Ben (21013) was released. In July 2012, the Namdaemun Gate (renamed Sungnyemun Gate) (21016) was released. In September 2012, the Villa Savoye (21014) was released. The Eames House (21015) was scheduled and then canceled, as it never came out as a set. In June 2013, the Leaning Tower of Pisa (21015) was announced for the Lego Architecture series. Its set number (21015) replaced the original Eames House after it was canceled. United Nations Headquarters (21018) came out next.
In October 2013, Marina Bay Sands and the Eiffel Tower were both announced. The product range has been reviewed favourably by many commentators. Journalist Jenny Williams said "The scale on these kits is pretty small, though, so don’t expect exquisite detail. But creating with Lego bricks is quite a fun way to pay homage to great architects". ^ "Sears Tower now named Willis Tower". ^ a b "Release of two Frank Lloyd Wright Collection sets from LEGO Architecture". . May 9, 2009 ^ "The world’s tallest building in LEGO® bricks". . May 25, 2011 ^ "Modernist architectural icon immortalised in LEGO® bricks". . April 4, 2011 ^ "Frank Lloyd Wright’s Robie House Joins LEGO® Architecture series". . September 19, 2011 ^ "Sydney’s revered opera house immortalized in LEGO® bricks". . February 21, 2012 ^ "LEGO® Big Ben celebrates Victorian London’s greatest landmark". . April 18, 2012 ^ "Le Corbusier’s French masterpiece becomes a LEGO® Architecture model".