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10 Best LEGO Designs

by Leila Brillson on August 19, 2009 at 12:31 PM

James May's idea to build a two-story, functional LEGO house might seem ambitious, but taking the plastic blocks to another level has been a practice since their invention. Building with the blocks requires patience, a technical mind, and a love for the toy. Here is a look at some of the most tech-savvy LEGO-made projects around, from iPhones to the Darth Vader.


10. In tribute to the late Michael Jackson, the LEGO People do a stop-motion version of 'Thriller.' Both a construction and animation feat. [From: BoingBoing]



9. Novelist Norman Mailer's LEGO City of the Future was built in 1965 and stands at seven feet tall. He constructed it to represent utopia, and it holds 4 million imaginary people. [From: Greg.org]



8. Check out this massively detailed, large-scale LEGO battleship designed by a German father. A replica of the USS Harry S. Truman, the model weighed over 350 pounds. [From: Brickshelf.com, via TechEBlog]



7. Not only is it an exact replica of a V8 32-valve engine, but this LEGO version actually moves, powering a little motor, just like the real thing. Take a video tour, and watch the gears and pumps move like its metal counterpart. [From: Brickshelf.com, via HackedGadgets]



6. 'Donkey Kong' gets the block-treatment when a vintage Mindstorms system is used to actually recreate the classic video game. Watch the video here.



5. Amy Hughes recreated the Abston Church of Christ, and her kitties took a liking to the structure, resulting in the creepily funny "Cats in (LEGO) Church" Web slideshow series. As we all know, when cats are involved, the Internet listens... [From: AmyHughes]



4. Auctioned off in Michael Jackson's estate is a life-sized, talking Darth Vader statue that asks, "What is thy bidding, my master?" However, the cape, obviously, is made of cloth. [From: CNBC.com]




3. Basing an entire career on LEGO building, Nathan Sawaya has some of the most artistic designs on the Web. 'iPhone' (above) and 'Underneath' are particularly beautiful. [From: DesignBoom]



2. Music can be LEGO-ized, too. Twenty of the most recognizable album covers of all time have been represented in plastic form, including classics like Nirvana's 'Nevermind' and Pink Floyd's 'The Division Bell.' Hey, even geeks need their tunes. [From: TheToyZone]


1. Architect William Webb rebuilds New York using nothing but LEGO with beautiful and eerily accurate results. Don't miss the hyper-detailed Empire State Building Chrysler Building (pictured above). [From: BrickShelf]

Tags: building, features, lego, top

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