5 ms·

When wasn’t Lego art? I display my Lego dinosaurs next to my TV. I think they look cool. They weren’t meant to be functional dinosaurs.

robg 5y ago
Seems different in kind, not degree. A 3 year old plays with Duplo to make planes and rockets. Yes, art in the sense that drawing on paper is a form of art. But a close to realistic rendering of a soup can that now sells for $millions is / was reflecting back a reductive sense of nostalgia for a premium. Kudos to LEGO for capitalizing for a premium, just a different product for a different consumer that could buy and appreciate an actual typewriter. This consumer centric version of art forms is perhaps the same reflection by which Warhol was dismissed by some early critics. Just not the version of LEGO that reflects the endless design iterations in any one box.
bluetomcat 5y ago
The "conventional" Lego builds are meant to be a non-functional miniature of a real-world or a fictional object, with some playing features. This creation crosses this boundary because it tries to replicate a real-world object in its original scale, with its inner mechanisms, and yet it doesn't achieve the purpose of the original object. Seems somewhat wasteful, cynical and purposeless.
- nindalf 5y ago
  Only as wasteful, cynical and purposeless as my dinosaurs. I look at them and feel happy. That’s pretty much it. If I assembled this typewriter, I’d look at it and feel happy.
- walugipnts 5y ago
  people have been making models for centuries, the only cynical thing here is your opinion
- cephalization 5y ago
  Yeah but I get to build this typewriter... I derive value from the act of building and replicating the inner mechanisms of a typewriter that I could not build before. Isn't all entertainment somewhat 'wasteful' or 'purposeless' beyond enjoyment?
  - bluetomcat 5y ago
    I'm 35 and am a keen collector of 1:18 scale diecast model cars. The sense of enjoyment for me comes from seeing their intricate details exactly replicated, from putting models from a similar age/brand/model next to one another and comparing them, from knowing that they can endure a long time without degrading and I can pass them to my son. I fail to understand the appeal of "adult non-toy" Lego sets like these, however. It's impossible to replicate real-world stuff at any serious level of detail (the smallest brick is far too large), as mechanical devices they are flimsy (no greasing, no bearings, clumsily-weighed movements), separate sets do not stand well next to one another due to different scales and wildly varying subject matters. I do know that it is fun to build a Technic race car with steering, suspension, differentials and pistons, but such model-like stuff doesn't bring much value, IMO.
    - allturtles 5y ago
      No, Legos don't and can't exactly replicate all the real world details of the things they model. It's no surprise that different hobbies have different pleasures. But surely you see that you have a niche hobby that to many (most?) people would superficially appear to not "bring much value"? The joy of Lego is taking generic bricks and figuring out how to represent the thing you want to build out of them. With pre-designed kits like this, many people find pleasure in seeing how the designer figured out how to use piece X to represent object Y, or used a particular building technique to create a particular effect. e.g. the Lego Empire State Building uses the generic grille to great effect to render the windows of the building, and generic yellow tiles to make convincing little taxis, and some neat building tricks to create the setbacks in the tower without making it look 'lego-like' (with abrupt, brick-size shifts).
    - antiterra 5y ago

robg 5y ago

Seems different in kind, not degree. A 3 year old plays with Duplo to make planes and rockets. Yes, art in the sense that drawing on paper is a form of art. But a close to realistic rendering of a soup can that now sells for $millions is / was reflecting back a reductive sense of nostalgia for a premium. Kudos to LEGO for capitalizing for a premium, just a different product for a different consumer that could buy and appreciate an actual typewriter. This consumer centric version of art forms is perhaps the same reflection by which Warhol was dismissed by some early critics. Just not the version of LEGO that reflects the endless design iterations in any one box.

bluetomcat 5y ago

The "conventional" Lego builds are meant to be a non-functional miniature of a real-world or a fictional object, with some playing features. This creation crosses this boundary because it tries to replicate a real-world object in its original scale, with its inner mechanisms, and yet it doesn't achieve the purpose of the original object. Seems somewhat wasteful, cynical and purposeless.

nindalf 5y ago
Only as wasteful, cynical and purposeless as my dinosaurs. I look at them and feel happy. That’s pretty much it. If I assembled this typewriter, I’d look at it and feel happy.
walugipnts 5y ago
people have been making models for centuries, the only cynical thing here is your opinion
cephalization 5y ago
Yeah but I get to build this typewriter... I derive value from the act of building and replicating the inner mechanisms of a typewriter that I could not build before. Isn't all entertainment somewhat 'wasteful' or 'purposeless' beyond enjoyment?
- bluetomcat 5y ago
  I'm 35 and am a keen collector of 1:18 scale diecast model cars. The sense of enjoyment for me comes from seeing their intricate details exactly replicated, from putting models from a similar age/brand/model next to one another and comparing them, from knowing that they can endure a long time without degrading and I can pass them to my son. I fail to understand the appeal of "adult non-toy" Lego sets like these, however. It's impossible to replicate real-world stuff at any serious level of detail (the smallest brick is far too large), as mechanical devices they are flimsy (no greasing, no bearings, clumsily-weighed movements), separate sets do not stand well next to one another due to different scales and wildly varying subject matters. I do know that it is fun to build a Technic race car with steering, suspension, differentials and pistons, but such model-like stuff doesn't bring much value, IMO.
  - allturtles 5y ago
    No, Legos don't and can't exactly replicate all the real world details of the things they model. It's no surprise that different hobbies have different pleasures. But surely you see that you have a niche hobby that to many (most?) people would superficially appear to not "bring much value"? The joy of Lego is taking generic bricks and figuring out how to represent the thing you want to build out of them. With pre-designed kits like this, many people find pleasure in seeing how the designer figured out how to use piece X to represent object Y, or used a particular building technique to create a particular effect. e.g. the Lego Empire State Building uses the generic grille to great effect to render the windows of the building, and generic yellow tiles to make convincing little taxis, and some neat building tricks to create the setbacks in the tower without making it look 'lego-like' (with abrupt, brick-size shifts).
  - antiterra 5y ago