BrickJournal #51 by TwoMorrows Publishing

The Magazine for LEGO® Enthusiasts of All Ages! Issue 51 • June 2018

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Interviews: Guy Himber, Paul Hetherington Rob Gillies

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Issue 51 • June 2018

Contents

From the Editor...........................................................2

People

Steampunk Spotlight: Guy Himber................................................................4 Paul Hetherington’s Unchain My Heart.................................................10 Dominique Damerose and Lionel Martin Building Steampunk Paris................................15 Steampunk Spotlight: Rod Gillies.................................................................20 Steampunk Spotlight: Markus “Madstopper” Ronge........................22 Steampunk Spotlight: Austen Henry- Biskup and Pamela HenryBiskup’s Metalbeard’s Compound.............28 Steampunk Spotlight: Jonas Kramm..........................................................34 Vince Paver: Making Steampunk Figures..........................40 Steampunk Spotlight: Vincent Gachod...................................................44

Building

BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art: Steampunk Camera.......................................... 48 You Can Build It: LASERbot (Lantern Assisted Submarine Electronic Robot)..................................................58 Minifigure Customization 101: Steampunk and Designing Small Details............................................................62 You Can Build It: Jabba’s Palace MINI Diorama .......................66 Community Ads......................................................78 Last Word.....................................................................79 AFOLs.............................................................................80

From the Editor: Hi there!

June 2018 Issue 51 Publisher John Morrow Editor in Chief Joe Meno Photography Editor Geoff Gray Proofreader John Morrow Japanese Bureau Editor Nathan Bryan West Coast Editors Todd Kubo Ashley Glennon LEGO Ideas Correspondent Glen Wadleigh Contributors: Jared Burks, Dominique Damerose, Christopher Deck, Vincent Gachod, Rod Gillies, Paul Hetherington, Kevin Hinkle, Austen Henry-Biskup, Pamela Henry-Biskup, Guy Himber, Ellen Kooijman, Jonas Kramm, Lionel Martin, Vince Paver, Markus Ronge, Tommy Williamson, and Greg Hyland. Many thanks to the websites who have served as mirrors for BrickJournal: www.LUGNET.com www.Brickshelf.com www.peeron.com www.brickmodder.net www.rustyclank.com About the Cover: Paul Hetherington’s remarkable Unchain My Heart. Photo by Joe Meno. About the Contents Page: A look at Vincent Gachod’s Cruise Airship. Photo by Vincent Gachod.

This issue is the second one we have themed to Steampunk, as it’s been a while since our first Steampunk issue, and that one is now sold out! A lot of new builders have come on to the scene since that last issue, so I called on the Guest Editor of the first Steampunk issue to return and helm this one. And Guy Himber did a great job in finding new builders and revisiting a couple of older AFOLs. There’s a lot to look for here, so I’ll let you get on to the rest of the mag. I hope that it will inspire you to take a look at this theme and build something... Build on! Joe Meno, Editor P.S. Have ideas or comments? Drop me a line at brickjournal@gmail.com. I’m open to suggestions and comments and will do my best to reply. P.P.S... Yes, BrickJournal has a website—www.brickjournal.com! Twitter? Yep, there too—http://twitter.com/brickjournal. Facebook? Yup—http://www.facebook.com/group. php?gid=58728699914&ref=mf. Or you can scan the bottom codes with a QR reader! P.P.P.S. If you want info on a subscription, you can go to: http://bit.ly/BrickJournalSub or scan below! Website

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Glossary AFOL (Adult Fan of LEGO) AFFOL (Adult Female Fan of LEGO) TFFOL (Teen Female Fan of LEGO) NLSO (Non-LEGO Significant Other) MOC (My Own Creation) TLG (The LEGO Group) BURP (Big Ugly Rock Piece) LURP (Little Ugly Rock Piece) POOP (Pieces—that can be or should be made—Of Other Pieces)

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SNOT (Studs Not on Top) LUG (LEGO Users Group) LTC (LEGO Train Club) MECHA (a large armored robot on legs, typically controlled by a pilot seated inside) MECH (a large piloted combat robot) DARK AGES (usually teen years, when you drift away from building) STUDS OUT (building where the studs on bricks face the viewer)

LEGO®, TECHNIC, MINDSTORMS, Belville, Scala, BIONICLE, ExoForce, Mars Mission, World City, and other LEGO theme lines are trademarks of the LEGO Group of companies. All articles, photos, and art are copyright BrickJournal Media, LLC 2011, TwoMorrows Publishing and the respective writers, photographers, and artists. All rights reserved. All trademarked items are the property of their respective owners and licensees. Subscriptions are $60 Economy US, $72 Expedited US, $94 International, or $24 Digital Only and can be purchased at www.twomorrows.com or payment sent to: TwoMorrows Publishing, 10407 Bedfordtown Drive, Raleigh, NC 27614 USA. The editorial/advertising office address for BrickJournal is: BrickJournal Editor, 5610 Briar Oak Lane #510, Raleigh, NC 27612 USA or admin@brickjournal.com. First Printing. Printed in China. ISSN 1941-2347. BrickJournal and its staff would like to thank the LDraw community for the software it makes available to the community, which we use for making all of the instructions and renderings in this magazine. We would especially like to thank Kevin Clague for his continued upgrades of the LPub tool that is a part of2the LDraw suite. For more information, please visit http://www.ldraw.org.

Welcome back brave adventurers! It was seven long years ago, November 2011, when I edited the first ever STEAMPUNK issue of BrickJournal (#16). The Steampunk issue proved to be one of BrickJournal’s most popular editions with its iconic Voyage to the Moon MOC cover and became the impetus to the publication of my book, Steampunk LEGO, by No Starch Press. The Moon MOC even made an appearance in The LEGO Movie and became part of Benny’s advertising campaign! In the years that followed I guest-edited another issue of BrickJournal featuring the Iron Builder Competition, and wrote several other feature articles focused on special topics of interest and feats of daring-do. So now the time has come for us to revisit the Steampunk muse! Not that much has changed in the theme (which is permanently stuck in Victorian times) but many creative and talented AFOLs have been smitten by the Siren’s call of brass goggles and top hats and have taken LEGO to even greater gaslight heights for our amusement. For you first-time travelers to the world of steam and whimsy, you may ask, “What is this Steam-thing, and who are these punks?” ‘Steampunk’ takes place in an alternate timeline during the period from the midto-late-1800s. In the UK, Queen Victoria is climbing to the greatest heights of her reign, and in the former Colonies, the Wild West is capturing the imaginations of the newly minted American States. This great age of exploration is filled with floating cities, steam-powered industrialization and numerous wooden contraptions sheathed in brass. Let us visit this fertile ground where the seeds of Steampunk take root and many an alternate and wonderful historical tale awaits the telling. It is time to grow some impressive facial hair and jump into our horseless buggy to see what wonders await!

Yours in Steamy goodness,

Guy Himber

People

BrickJournal: You have been called the “Steampunk guy.” Why is that? Guy Himber: It happened by accident. The first MOCs I built that got Brothers Brick recognition were Steampunk. From that point the theme really caught my designer’s eye and hasn’t really let me go. I build in plenty of other themes, but I always seem to come back to my Steamy ways because I own a ton of gold and brown bricks, so I need to find some use for them! My continued support of the theme led to a number of Convention awards and recognitions and eventually I was asked by Joe Meno (editor of this fine publication) to be a guest editor for the original Steampunk issue. Eventually, I just became the “Steampunk guy” and now my Mom calls me that when I am bad. What keeps Steampunk fresh as a theme? I think the limits of the Victorian theme are its strength. There is a semi-predetermined language that we have all agreed upon and we are invited to push the limits of that interpretation. Steampunk is also the best theme for mash-up designs. Almost anything can be reimagined as a Victorian version (Transformers, Star Wars, Super Heroes, that list goes on and on) so as ‘new’ things get popular, they can always be remade ‘new-old’ and redesigned with the theme’s sense of aesthetics.

Brass Haberdasher, minifig portrait of Guy. (By Paul Lee, known on Flickr as Polywen)

Steampunk Spotlight:

Guy Himber Article by Guy Himber Photography by Guy Himber, Bruce Whistlecraft, and Norman Chan Art by Paul Lee

What is the future of Steampunk? Steampunk has no future in that it is permanently stuck in a very specific yet highly inspiring time period. Much like the Wild West (which is technically part of the Steampunk theme) it will never radically change. The Space theme, for example, is ever growing and evolving with each moment. But Steampunkanese is a language that has a certain permanent sound and vibration that is fixed in history. We can go back and pay it a visit but it will never jump forward to our time and place unless used as a muse by creative folk and makers. Why top hats? How do you know when you have a top hat problem? There are certain features that make it clear you are in the land of Steampunk. Top hats are one of the key things that people can readily identify and pretty much know ... “Hey! I bet this is one of those Victorian Steamy things!” Top hats (and bowlers) are easy visual cues to let your audience know where you want to take them. Other items might be goggles, loudly clashing fancy and formal (dandy) dressing habits, claims of important sounding titles, doctorates and military ranks, as well as elaborate sounding names are all frequent identifiers of Steampunk origins. Certain antiquated-feeling fonts and sepia-toned color schemes are also big visual clues. Joyful displays of overcomplicated gear-filled mechanisms and ridiculously proportioned machines might also clue you in. And the rivets... never forget the rivets..... Often the best Steampunk throws off the conventional look and thinking to achieve its ends.

Man O’ War HMS CrazyBricks

This fine sea-faring beastie, HMS CrazyBricks is a wild Steampunk Man O’ War crewed by a scurvy collection of crafty Dwarves, Skull Pirates and various Cats, Pigs and Cows. It comes apart into five sections for “ease” (ha!) of shipping and got its first public showing at Bricks by the Bay where it won the Best Large Creation in the Seven Seas section. A big shout-out to Norman Chan from Tested.com who got these great photos of the ship during the public day. The masts are DUPLO which is usually wildly disproportionate for System use, but the sheer scale of this ship (big x big x very, very big) makes these giant parts feel right at home. I lost count of how many cannons she has (I only had enough to complete the one side!) and all the cannons can retract into the hull and be completely covered by the doors to the ship’s guns. On deck are a number of BrickArms Gatling Guns in custom brass colors and an assortment of Victorian weapons for assaulting enemy vessels and bending them to the will of the Queen’s Glorious Empire. Photos by Norman Chan.

Steampunk Vampire Slayer Kit

Another great example of crossing over themes, the Vampire Slayer Kit is something I had wanted to build for quite awhile. As an added bonus, the ornate box makes a fantastic creaking sound from the hinges when it opens and closes. All of your vampire slaying needs for the foggy streets of London are here, including: • Minifig Crucifix • Coffin Snuff Box • Bat’s Wing • Large Holy Water Flask • Ivory Mirror • Hunter’s Cufflinks • Holy Bible • Hunter’s Pistol • Silver Skull Bullets • Holy Balm • Steampunk Stakes • (6) Bottles of Assorted Elixirs

SteamCat

Steam! Cats! I have been thinking of and sketching silly versions of Steampunk-themed felines for a while now. With the addition of a laser gun-wielding mouse, SteamCat seems complete.

Track Shoes

This MOC is based upon a card drawn by artist Phil Foglio from the Munchkin Steampunk game. The play-on-words is subtle and the original drawing is just about perfect in the feeling and energy it brings to mind. I really enjoyed capturing this manic-moment of technological joy and discovery.

Mechtorians

Craftsman extraordinaire Bruce Whistlecraft (www. brucewhistlecraft.com) is the mind behind the world of the Mechtorians (www.mechtorian.com). He was kind enough to let me recreate some of his characters as minifigs and they have become enormously popular with LEGO and Steampunk robot fans all over! “Studley Billund had a dream. A dream of total compatibility between all Mechtorians. He dreamed of a world where people could help each other by lending a hand, a whole arm, a leg or whatever part was needed at the time. A world where people could come together to build something greater than themselves by combining their unique abilities and unique parts for the greater good. But people told him he was just playing. His ideas were the dreams of a child. He listened to them….. Now he makes the most popular toy system in the world.”

www.brickcoaster.com

Custom Roller Coaster Tracks, Sets and Accessories7

HMS Butterfield

The HMS Butterfield is, for the most part, a redress over one of Brickmania’s (brickmania.com) amazing model M3A1 Stuart Light Tanks and is a prime example of kit-bashing an existing design and claiming it into part of the Steampunk universe. The addition of a gold-plated top hat and a golden rifle complete the distinguished look of a gentleman warrior.

The Golden Empress

The Golden Empress is so large that its shadow covers small villages entirely, leaving massive air pollution in its wake. The colossal airship demonstrates the awesome power of the Qing Dynasty. This Asian Steampunk-themed MOC is based upon one of the fantastic illustrations by my friend James Ng.

Find his excellent illustrations here: www.jamesngart.com. To achieve an accurate look, I used some secondary market parts from Bricktw (red swords, roof tiles system and some rounded bricks). Sprinkled throughout the MOC are custom chromed elements from Chrome Bricks. It’s a big model, taking up a 2’ x 2’ footprint.

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People

Paul Hetherington’s

Unchain My Heart!

Article and Photography by Paul Hetherington

As the sands of time erode the checkered past, the heart beats to emancipate itself from its chains to find true love....

After two months of building I wrote this quote to sum up the journey that I had just completed. Sometimes I find you don’t always know exactly what you are designing until you are able to see the finished product. Then the layers of meaning and symbolism reveal themselves to you as you reflect on what you have completed. Back in the summer of 2015 I embarked upon my most artistic creation to date. This is the story of how it came to be. I remember seeing my first chrome LEGO element in an old Model Team Hot Rod set back in 1995 and thinking at the time that the element didn’t look like LEGO. I soon became fascinated with collecting as many strange LEGO elements as I could. Bionicle sets were a particularly inspiring

source of interesting shapes and textures. As the Bionicle line expanded over the years, the elements became more interesting, and in my mind, more useful. Many of the parts have gothic, art nouveau and futuristic styling which was hard to come by with regular system elements. Over the years I have enjoyed trying to seamlessly blend Bionicle and System together to create something new—the challenge of creating something that at first does not appear to be LEGO. This was the mindset for the beginning of Unchain My Heart. I wanted to approach creating my model as an art piece instead of a MOC. I like to have an overall concept behind my ideas so that my creations are multi-faceted and will hopefully encourage the viewer to think and see the world in a different light. I want to be able to relay a story and draw the viewer in. In the case of Unchain My Heart the vision for the robot and the heart came about right away. It was the finer details that manifested themselves slowly and took the course of the build to fully show themselves to me. Some of the symbolism came unconsciously while some was premeditated. The first vision I had for Unchain My Heart came when I was shopping for a calendar back in 2012. I came across a very interesting Steampunk calendar by digital artist Kazuhiko Nakamura. There were two pictures of robotic automata that immediately inspired me. At the time I didn’t think it was possible to build what I was seeing with LEGO. It would be another three years before I would

have the parts I would need to bring these visions to life. I spent several years collecting as many gold and chrome LEGO elements as I could. By the summer of 2015, LEGO had made a good number of gold and chrome elements and I had collected a decent amount of them. I knew it was time to create a large model with them. That is when the Steampunk robot concept popped into my head again and Unchain My Heart was started. Right from the start I knew I wanted to introduce some nontraditional colors into my Steampunk creation. I wanted to try something new and shake it up a bit. This was to be my first attempt at a Steampunk creation and I thought I would make up my own rules and approach it from an artistic perspective. For those familiar with my creations, checkers are my favorite pattern and have become a theme in many of my works. I even have the hallway in my house lined with checkers. In this case, as the concept began to develop, the checkers took on meaning. They would represent the past experiences and relationship history of the lover’s heart, likening past experiences to moves on a chess board. They would be partially covered with tan and dark tan sand. The sand represents the sands of time as the owner of this heart was approaching the midway point in his life. Basically, it was time for him to settle down; time to let go of some of his hang-ups and fears and to make himself available to find love. This would be done by severing the chains that surround his heart.

With the concept in place I could begin construction. My starting point was to “doodle” with all of the chrome and gold parts that I had collected. I let my mind be free to create as many robotic shapes and mechanisms as I could imagine. I found many of the larger Bionicle parts could fit together in interesting combinations. Smaller weapons and decorative elements made elegant shapes when organized in circular patterns. I found element #90202 tube 1 M Ø4.85 w. holder and element #4733 Brick 1x1 W.4 knobs very useful to attach elements in repetitive circular patterns. These patterns could then be layered on top of each other to make more complex designs. Many of the gears and mechanisms that make up the chest, back and head came from these doodles. As I built up the form of the torso, I would hold these sub-assemblies up and see which one would fit each section the best. Beginning construction.

I first built the heart-shaped base using plate hinges and curved bricks to get the smooth lines. Then I built the checkers and layered in the sand on top of four 48 x 48 baseplates. The next step was to fill in the front of the heart with some patterns and grilles, and finally add a generator that would power the robot. I also built a miniature robot that would move back and forth searching for love. His name is Artemus and his robot wife Flo is behind him coming to see if he has found what he has been searching for. The generator and robot are powered with Power Function motors and a 9 Volt LEGO Train Controller. I had to hide them in the base as I was building, so that gave me an idea how high the heart had to be raised up. The first real challenge was to begin construction of the torso and set a style for the robot. For this I found inspiration in a picture of Dumbledore’s office from the Harry Potter movies. The circular staircase and gothic arch with rounded balcony came from this source. This setting is where the

A look at the torso and base.

owner of the heart stands with a wedding ring, patiently waiting to find his beloved. As I continued fleshing out the torso, I added in some little windows to give the impression that robot was a giant mansion that had people living inside. Once the shaping of the ribcage was done, I set about making some faces on the side of the waist. The opening on the side uses two Bionicle Rahkshi heads that make up the mouth of the large face. Within the nose is a secondary smaller face. In fact, through the creation I endeavored to place several small faces and mini robots in amongst the internal workings. As the torso took shape I detoured and began creating the arms. I wanted very robotic-looking arms, and I knew that System bricks would not have the desired look. Therefore, I experimented with Technic wheel hubs as well as large Bionicle weapons and some random Technic elements. Once these came together I made the hands using some Technic rotation joint ball with arm parts to make the fingers. These had a great look but turned out to be too heavy for the arms to support. It was then that I decided to make a light circular blade for the right arm, and forego the right hand. This way it could be suspended in mid-air. My original intent was to have the left arm holding the heart up as the right reached over to sever the chains. This had to be modified so that the heart and hand could rest on the heart base. One secret feature is that the arms can be lowered and raised by turning the circular disks on the rear shoulder blades. They are geared to turn slowly and use two large Technic Type 2 Turntables to achieve their rotation. A Bionicle cockpit cover from the #8927 Toa Terrain Crawler makes up the shoulder element and completes the look of the arms. The next step was to build a mechanical heart using gold, chrome and dark red Bionicle parts. I added in some Aquanaut compasses as gauges, then attached some different chains to the torso.

Details on the side (above) and arm (below).

I found the most challenging section of the build to be the face. I had an idea of what I wanted it to look like, but at first, I was unable to recreate it with the elements that I had on hand. Each attempt at a face looked interesting but appeared as though it belonged on a different body. The styles just didn’t match. It took about a week of trial and error to seize upon the frame of the face. I used ball joints and plate hinges to make a three-dimensional framework of a face. For inspiration I referred to a forensic model that is used to recreate people’s faces from human skull remains. I already had the eyes built and was pleased to use a radar dish with a clock pattern to make a clockwork eye. As a tribute to the surrealist nature of the creation, I made a small Daliesque moustache for the robot. A Knights Kingdom shoulder panel completed the shaping of the nose and provided a manifold cover for the ventilation system located just under it. The top hat was the last section to be built. I wanted to give the robot a complex mechanized brain filled with all sorts of gadgets and with several mini robots running things. It seems that there is almost nothing more Steampunk than a top hat. I decided to only make the outline of a top hat so that all the internal machinery could be on display. This is where most of the smaller “doodles” that I had built in the first few weeks ended up. It was fun to jumble them in and try to make the robot look as though he had a personality.

On its journey to several Adult Fan LEGO Conventions, Unchain My Heart won “Best in Class Steampunk” and “Best in Show” at Brickcon 2015 as well as the “Steamy Goodness” award at Brickcan 2016. It has been featured in several books including LEGO Absolutely Everything You Need to Know by DK and The Greatest Brick Builds Amazing Creations in LEGO by Thunder Bay Press. It was also featured in an interview on Beyond the Brick that you can find on YouTube. Unchain My Heart has recently been on tour during 2017 and 2018 at Brick Universe, a travelling LEGO Convention in the US. It is the centerpiece of my gallery and it usually gets the most response from the public. Many people can’t believe it is all LEGO and usually ask where I had all the custom elements made. They are always surprised to find out that all the parts used were available in regular retail LEGO sets. It makes me feel happy when I see people taking pictures and selfies in front of it and when they return to spend time to pore over the details. For me, Unchain My Heart is the realization of my desire to create something unique that can reach out beyond the LEGO community and into the world of art. It has been a very satisfying experience to not only image and create this piece, but to present it to the world and see where its journey will go. Unchain My Heart, set me free!

Head and hat construction.

People

Lionel Martin (left) and Dominique Damerose pose by their layout.

Dominique Damerose and Lionel Martin:

Building Steampunk Paris Article by Guy Himber Photography by Dominique Damerose and Lionel Martin Born in the Charleville-Mézières in the Ardennes region of France, Dominic Damerose now lives and works in Dole, a town in the Jura. A 49-year old (the same age as the DUPLO theme), he has trained apprentices in home automation and electronics. Lionel Martin is known by his avatar Castor Troy, but, as he says, “Everybody calls me Castor” (a beaver in English). 44 years old, he’s a Quality/Marketing and IT manager who lives in Nevers in the middle of France. Both worked together to make a layout of Steampunk Paris, and BrickJournal talked to them about their work.

BrickJournal: How long have you been building with LEGO? Dominique Damerose: I started building with LEGO when I was ten. (Police and Classic Space were my favorite.) I continued to build carousel and large cargo planes until I was 16, then fell into a long Dark Age. This ended with my last son, Tom, who loved to build. I bought him many city sets and loved the construction methods. Together we built a city together including my first MOC: a McDonald’s restaurant. Lionel Martin: I’ve been playing with LEGO since I was five years old. My first LEGO sets were City and old-school SF. What is your favorite theme and why? DD: My favorite theme is the modular building. I like Star Wars 4 5 6, Ideas and Super-Heroes, which I share with my son Tom. LM: I like big dioramas with a lot of details. My favorites are Medieval Fantasy (I love Derfel’s universe), PostApocalyptic, and Steampunk. What inspired you to start building your own models? DD: I like to build something that has not been done before like a building or vehicle. LM: I have always created my own models. When I decide to start a new MOC, I look first at some special pieces. I search for ideas in books (my wife is a bookseller) and

afterwards I search on flickr to see what has been done before. How do you design your models? DD: I use very little software like LEGO Digital Designer; I prefer to manipulate the LEGO pieces to find assemblies. When I reproduce a building I work with photos. LM: For a big diorama, I’m do a little planning, but in fact I do not do any special things beforehand. When I start a new MOC, I choose the color scheme and the specific pieces I want to showcase. I am very slow and I have to build it several times to get what I want. What’s your favorite creation? DD: It was a haunted house depicting horror movie scenes in every room. It was my first collaborative MOC with Jérôme Kloepfer (Kloou) and Eric Schweitzer (N3rick68). It was really well done and attracted a lot of people during the exhibitions. Feedback from the MOC gave me great pleasure. LM: My own favorite creation is The Vampire Castle. I think I could never demolish it. I’m quite proud because The Vampire Castle will be displayed in a toy museum for one year in Moirans en Montagne (France). What other projects are you on now? DD: With my co-builder Castor Troy, I have to enlarge Paris in order to be connected with his part. I have just finished the Alexandre III bridge which spans the Seine. I always have ideas in mind, but nothing concrete for now.

The Moulin Rouge.

LM: Actually, I thought to build a new project in 2018: Journey to the Center of the Earth from Jules Verne. But when I saw the gap between the two parts of Paris, I decided immediately to expand my part. We have presented the complete diorama at Dole exhibition in September 2017, and that very evening I understood what I’ll spend my time on the next few months. What is it about the Steampunk theme and style that you find so appealing/inspiring? DD: The theme is very inspiring. I like the time of the industrial revolution and we can stick to the story while adding a part of the imagination. In addition I am a fan of gold, brown and dark colors; they give a very warm atmosphere. LM: The interest of Steampunk is that it has no limit. We could build London or New York in Steampunk or we could build ships, wacky machines, mecha... the color scheme is very interesting too. In exhibition, the public understands that it is really the imagination that is at the origin of creation. I found that this kind of theme is very popular with women [laughs] more than Star Wars or Technic.

The funicular to Montmartre.

What do you think is the future of Steampunk? What Steampunk things do you look forward to building in the future? DD: The building of the Grand Palais would really be the finishing touch to the Paris MOC. I don’t know what I’m going to do in the future. Immediately, I had to finish the V2 of Paris, but after this extension I don’t really know. Maybe building New York or London…

LM: I imagine I will always work with Dom. But I will be very proud to work on a big international diorama with Eero Okkonen, L’etranger Absurde, Dwalin Forkbeard… What dream part(s) should LEGO provide us to expand the Steampunk theme? DD: It’s really a theme that LEGO should develop. In the future I would like to see Journey to the Center of the Earth or 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea. LM: We were quite disappointed that LEGO Ideas did not retain Captain Nemo’s Steampunk submarine—a great creation. Dream parts are big gears, little chains, elastic.

What are the most Steampunk LEGO parts you like to build with? DD: I like to find new uses with new and old LEGO parts that have not been done before. LM: I think I’m not bad at using cockpits and windows. But Dom is better than me at using old parts. He’s discreet but he has no limit with LEGO pieces particularly with the old ones and finding new uses. How does your building partnership work? i.e. Who is the principal designer, who directs the build creation? Who is in charge of all the models? How did you meet and how long have you been friends? DD: There was no main designer, each builder worked on their own part of Paris. With Castor, we instantly got along well and we are on the same wavelength. Castor for me was a source of inspiration and motivation; it is a shame that we live so far from each other. When we meet time passes too quickly and we have so much to tell. I wish we could take the time to MOC together. LM: We knew each other thanks to the French forum Brick Pirate and I’ve met Dom at Dole exhibition in 2015. We decided to work together, naturally. We had two ideas for a town: Post-APOC or Steampunk. After a few discussions we have opted for Paris and Steampunk. There is no hierarchy, but Dom is the best.

A monowheel drives down one of the streets.

For example, six months after starting the project, Dom sent me a picture representing a few minifigs. I answered,

The Louvre.

“Hey, What the ...? You chose flesh and not yellow minifigs. Do you know the price of one hand (on Bricklink) and the number of minifigs we need (about 1000)?” And Dom’s reply was, “I know, but it will be more beautiful.” Another time, he called me: “I think it will be better if the diorama will be visible in 360°”, and I answer, “Yes, Dom, but I have to take back all the buildings!” This man has no limit! How big is the display? How long does it take to move and set up? DD: The whole MOC is about 5m x 4m and takes about a day to build. LM: My part is 2.2m x 2.5m and Domino’s part is 3m20 x 4m: The diorama complete is five meters long and four meters wide. But my part is too small. Dom didn’t respect the previous size, so I must work again to obtain the right size! What gave you the idea to create such an impressive MOC? DD: Paris is a wonderful city, with many interesting buildings. When I spoke to Castor about building the city, he immediately said yes. How many buildings are in the layout? DD: There are many buildings (about 30) but for the diorama to be highlighted and very visual, it was necessary to diversify places and things to see. I paid particular attention to angles of view and different levels of construction to give it volume. LM: There are about 30 buildings in my part. Did this just start with one building? DD: I started with the climbing railway Montmartre and the Moulin Rouge.

Another busy Parisian street.

LM: Honestly, I recycled four buildings of my previous town. We decided to share the work on symbolic Paris’s building. Dom chose the Moulin Rouge, the Eiffel Tower in construction, “ Grands magasins de Paris”, Sacré Coeur, Place du Tertre, and the funicular of Montmartre. I chose le Louvre, Notre Dame, the Seine, le Bazar de l’hotel de Ville. It’s missing probably the Arc de Triomphe and a train station. How did it grow to such a large-scale project? DD: This is my third collaborative diorama and they are getting bigger because I have more and more LEGO pieces. In the beginning we did not plan to build something so big. But for the scales between the different buildings to work, it was necessary to enlarge and to enlarge still more. LM: The scale of each part was established from the beginning. When you engage in such a big project, you have to keep up the pace of work. You have to build the equivalent of two modular buildings per month for two years.

An elephant walker, built by our friend Ronald Laurençot (aka: skiz0f0x on Flickr).

How does your distribution of labor and design work between the two of you? DD: We shared the buildings that we wanted to build according to our desires. Then Castor made a sketch of his part that quickly gave the tone of the project. LM: We live 270 kilometres from each other so we have chosen to divide the work into two parts with symbolic monuments of Paris. The challenge for us was to suggest

instead of making a perfect replica. The specifications were: diorama in 360°, no baseplate, no limit, and wherever you look you must discover a detail as you could see it on a little creation. How many bricks, how long to build, etc.? DD: It took over 450,000 parts and over two years to build. Are you finished, or will this expand forever? DD: It is not finished yet. There is a part that needs to be aligned better and there is still some building to complete in the middle. LM: The extension is in progress. I have built a few buildings but the V2 needs about twelve buildings. During the first exhibition, I understand that public couldn’t see all the details. I think this new version will be the most beautiful LEGO town you have ever seen before. What are your two favorite buildings in the layout and why? I love all the Castor MOCs because there is always a little building trick, and a lot of imagination. What are the buildings you are most proud of? DD: As I always say, my next creation will always be the one I prefer, but I’m still a little soft for the “Moulin Rouge.” Paul Hetherington had already created this building, which inspired me greatly. LM: I am proud to have achieved the goal and that the city is really beautiful. I have no preference. The only thing that matters is the result and you understand when you see the eyes of the public. I like the “whoa” effect! I’m happy when I see big eyes and closed mouths in front of the diorama. Anything else you want to make sure folks know about you or your models? DD: For this project, we were fortunate to benefit from LEGO’s “support.” Without this help, it would be impossible for us to do a great MOC like Paris. It is important for us that LEGO maintain this type of help and support to LUGs and MOCers. Notre Dame.

One of the many layout details.

And who is performing magic? Houdini!

People

I’m Rod Gillies, I live in Edinburgh in Scotland. In the “real world” I work in innovation for a whisky company— inventing new drinks. It’s quite possibly the best job in the whole world. I’ve been active in the LEGO world for maybe ten years or so, and it was the Steampunk building genre which really got me going back when I first discovered the online community on Flickr. Although I’ve since built in many different styles and genres, Steampunk is probably still my favorite—a building theme I come back to over and over. I never tire of adding greeble-y pipes and boilers and pistons to an unlikely vehicle or flying machine. For me, Steampunk is a wonderful leap of imagination. Unlike regular sci-fi, where you take current tech and project it forward, I love the exercise of imagining retrotech—how the world might have turned out if we’d stuck with steam power, or if old Charlie Babbage had got his Difference Engine working properly. I don’t just build Steampunk LEGO models, I’ve also written some Steampunk adventure stories—The Empire Of Steam Trilogy. I’d got frustrated that there didn’t seem to be much of the particular variety of Steampunk that I enjoy—so I decided to write my own. I’m not a massive fan of “magicky” Steampunk, I like mine to be grounded in “real” technology (even if it’s not remotely feasible). That’s the stuff that I write, and also the stuff I tend to build. It might look faintly ridiculous, but it’s also supposed to be vaguely realistic!

Steampunk Spotlight:

Rod Gillies

Article and Art by Rod Gillies

Beyond Steampunk, I build a lot of microscale models, a bit of Pirate and Castle, and the odd sci-fi creation. I’ve also been lucky enough to build for DK’s official LEGO books. When I got to do a Star Wars book, and then a DC Super-Heroes book for them, I thought I’d died and gone to heaven. I got to travel to Billund and work with each theme’s design teams for a few days. It was awesome. When it comes to my building process, I rarely draw anything in advance—probably only if it’s a larger creation for exhibiting at a show. I tend to just sit at the bricks and start putting things together and see what happens. As a result, my creative process can be a little hit-or-miss— sometimes it works great and everything comes together quickly. Other times I sit for hours fiddling with pieces and then stomp off disgusted that it all looked rubbish! Increasingly I’m enjoying adding post-production effects to my photography. You can see that here on the images in the magazine. I love being able to add a faded sepia feel to a Steampunk image, or creating fake blueprints of a model, or setting a creation in an olden-times advertisement. I think it adds an element of story beyond the bricks alone. However, I hope people don’t think it’s cheating—I’d like to think that a good photo and some fancy editing can’t compensate for a crap creation. Hopefully what I’ve been doing with my images recently is seen as enhancing decent models!

For me, the future of my Steampunk building is all about exhibiting at shows. I have a large-scale Steampunk layout that I take along and set up at LEGO shows in the UK. I try to always build something new to add to it for each show. To be honest, with that, and with working on the DK books, I’ve not had a lot of time in the last couple of years to build anything just for fun—I’ll need to sort that out!

I’m always a little nervous when I hear people ask for an official Steampunk theme from LEGO. I just don’t know about that. I worry we’d end up with a bunch of pre-built greeble parts, or some disappointing grey and brown creations which confirm a bunch of the negative stereotypes of what Steampunk is. I like that our building genre is a broad church—full of different interpretations and looks. I’d hate for it all to end up looking the same because LEGO “defined the style” with a few sets.

People

BrickJournal: How long have you been building with LEGO? Markus Ronge: I started building in the early ’80s with the first set I remember playing with being the 316 Fire Boat (maybe here the seed for my nautical fascination was sown?). Being from former East Germany, LEGO was hard to come by. If you owned a set, you could weigh it in gold, basically. Compared to my friends I had an okay collection though, mostly City. My favorite set was the 5580 Model Team Highway Truck, my last childhood set was the 8865 Technic car. Even though I stopped building, I still got myself a LEGO catalogue each year, trying to stay up on things. Through my graffiti activities, by some coincidence, I was actually invited to Billund by a LEGO headhunter in 1997. They were looking for illustrators for some collectable discs—don’t ask me what has become of this!—but this was way out of my league back then. Still had a fun day in LEGOLand, though! As with most AFOLs, my Dark Age ended three years ago when my son became old enough to play with LEGO (oh, how much I hated the DUPLO phase before!). He had been watching Ninjago on TV, so one day I said, “Let’s get you a set.“ From there on I was hooked again, especially seeing all the new colors that had come out since my childhood.

Steampunk Spotlight: Markus “Madstopper” Ronge Interview by Guy Himber Photography by Markus Ronge

Markus “Madstopper” Ronge is a 40-year-old professional mural artist. His company Art-EFX (artefx_potsdam on Instagram or www.art-efx.eu) specializes in “transforming arts,” which is classic trompe l’oeil but with spray cans! He lives in Potsdam, Germany, on the beautiful outskirts of Berlin. Online, Markus can be found on Instagram (@madstopper78) and on Flickr (@Markus Ronge). His Madstopper nickname came from Potsdam itself—Madstop is the slang name for the city, derived from the reverse spelling of the name! BrickJournal chatted with Markus about his work.

Fun story: Back in the German Democratic Republic, you traded all kinds of stuff on the black market. My older brother traded a monopoly set—to us useless, to others a sought-after symbol of longed-for capitalism—for the 6970 Classic Space Station. It’s now in my possession, and I recently rebuilt it for my son who had just as fun with it now, as we had back in the ’80s. Now that’s what I call a great deal! What is your favorite theme and why? When I got back into building, I “chose“ between two directions: Either Neo-Classic Space or Steampunk. But since the NCS community is pretty extensive and at an impressive level already, I figured Steampunk posed more opportunities for contributing something fresh. The aesthetic of Steampunk with its combination of history, engineering and phantasy always appealed to me. Also, all the better models embody a

The Shining Light

level of “cool cuteness“ that I find lacking in a lot of other themes. A good MOC needs to make me smile before everything else. With official LEGO, I really enjoy my son’s Ninjago sets—especially the Steampunky Skybound season.

This seems to be everybody’s favorite, and I’m quite happy with it myself, still, too. It has a fun vibe of aggressiveness and cuteness at the same time—just like those cuddly little real beasts, huh? (Boy, are they ugly!) It’s the second time working with the saucer pieces, and using them upright doesn’t add to their handling. It took me awhile to figure a way out to make them fit how I wanted them to. Getting all this detail into the ship—sorry, little engineer, for such a crammed work place!—was quite the challenge, too. The stand has a little gradient of blue into black, which was the start of an everlasting love with Dark Blue. This little girl in there is Princess Brictoria who will be Queen in my “Full Steam“ series. So this MOC might be useful when I decide to do a prequel or origin story. We’ll see.

What inspired you to start building your own models? My favorite movie as a kid was 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea, and all the other Jules Verne stuff. So, when I saw gold, silver, and different shades of brown— let alone all those crazy Bionicle parts!—were available now, I thought: “Let me build the Nautilus!“ While researching images I discovered the awesome rendition by Alex Jones (Orion Pax)… which left me somewhat amazed and deflated at the same time, for there was no chance I could have topped that. Then I delved deeper into the LEGO Steampunk community and discovered the MOCs of V&A Steamworks, Captain Smog, and Rod Gillies, thinking “Jackpot! That’s my sh..!“ How do you design your models? I come up with a theme and go from there. I always try to have a backstory to the creation, giving it depth and “reason.” Then I create a new board on Pinterest and research related images. Then a certain image forms in my head, and off I go. When I build, I try not to replicate a certain thing, but rather go for the general “idea“ of the thing. What’s your favorite creation? Of the MOCs I have already “out“ on FlickR, I like the “Shining Light“ the best, for it embodies this interesting mix of “aggressive“ and “cute.” Of the yet unpublished ones, I have a nice old flying lightship, the “Trusty Rusty.” What other projects are you on now? I have been working on a huge project I call “Full Steam“ for a while now. It all started when I rebuilt the aforementioned Old Fire Boat set for my son. I thought I’d give it a Steampunk-twist and see where this would lead. It turned out pretty neat (and huge), which then led to me thinking: “Well, where there’s a flying fire boat, there also has to be something burning it could rescue!“ This led to me building a royal steam yacht—the “Skytanic.” Then I thought: “Well, how would a flying royal yacht get in distress?“ And, thankfully, in the Steampunk cosmos, rocks—or ice bergs for that matter—can also float. And then I thought: “Well...?”. Now, a year later, I’m almost finished with the project with me working on aa airship pier at the moment. When this one is finished, and all the photo editing is done, I will post it in a Netflix—or as I’ll call it: “NETBRIX”—way. I wrote a

The Hammerhead

This was my first try to work with the UFO saucer top as well as the 3x6x6 panel sloped with window with the latter proving to be a rather challenging piece. I try to use it as the gills of the shark. whole backstory to all the models and characters, so it will feel very organic. It centers around an explorer and scientist (of course!) who tries to win the love of the princess of Brixton. Since his chances as a non-royal are quite slim, he has to resort to some magic trickery... I hope this will be as much fun for everybody as it has been for me building these models, so stay tuned. But as everybody knows: There’s no idea as exciting as the next one, so in my head I’m already thinking about Season Two of “Full Steam.” What is it about the Steampunk theme and style that you find so appealing/inspiring? It’s pure fun and imagination. You can expand upon everyday life as you experience it, but give it a playful twist. For me that’s LEGO in its core idea. It’s somewhat similar to Classic Space in that it has a rather positive outlook on life and the future. Whereas Dieselpunk or Cyberpunk is rather dystopic, and Steampunk always offers the promise of places yet to be explored, gadgets yet to be invented, and fortunes yet to be made. Even all the weaponized vehicles feel like they were built just because you could, not because they will ever be deployed. (Don’t get me wrong: I like a good Dieselpunk or Cyberpunk build as well. Just look at the recent Speederbike contest with some amazing entries!) What do you think is the future of Steampunk? I don’t think it will ever be more than a niche style in LEGO, for you don’t get too many influences from mainstream pop culture these days. I mean, look at what has happened: You have seen all the Star Wars vehicles rebuilt in Steampunk style over the last years, which look cool—sure, but they are not very innovative models. If there was a really cool new Steampunk series on Netflix or a good blockbuster movie, I think this would spawn renewed interest in this style. I mean, look the push the Castle community has gotten from Lord of the Rings or Game of Thrones. I hear there’s a remake of 20,000 Leagues in the making—maybe that’ll do it.

For now everybody has to resort to good ol’ imagination.

What Steampunk things do you look forward to building in the future? I think way too much attention has been put onto vehicles of war in this genre. I’m trying to explore the daily minutia of this cosmos, for there also have to be bakeries, post offices, airports, police, and all the things that make life tick (it’s called “Clockwork-style“ for a reason!). Also, I like to tie in existing “official“ LEGO themes into my stories, for isn’t that what we did as kids? No reason a spaceship couldn’t land on a castle, right? In Season One of “Full Steam“ there will be a cameo of the Ninjago Sky Pirates; in Season Two I plan on incorporating some Chima stuff, which offers tons of yet unused possibilities. Should be fun! What dream part(s) should LEGO provide us to expand the Steampunk theme? As if there weren’t way too many parts already! Sometimes less is more, because it forces you to look for more creative solutions. The other day I saw a (non-LEGO) plate with studs on both sides on the Net. Though this would be highly practical—I like to build SNOT as much as the next guy—it would make some things a little too easy. Even the most perfect models always have little gaps in them which remind you that it’s still brick-built. If I wanted perfect, I’d go into “real“ scale modeling. In my experience you have a lot of “un- or “under-used“ bricks in your collection which pop up in your hand one day, and just feel like a totally new part, begging you to use it in your latest model. This proves to be especially true with all the Bionicle parts, which are totally useless one day, and prove to be the salt in your soup the other day.

The Humpback

I built this as an evil adversary to the “good“ Narwhale. Therefore I consciously tried to stay away from pearl gold which has a more positive vibe to it, I feel like. The mouth actually opens, and the propeller can be spun via an old 4.5V motor.

Then again: My perspective is one of someone who’s only back in the game for three years now, so I still have to catch up on lots of parts of colors like Dark Red, Dark Green and the like... What are the most Steampunk LEGO parts you like to build with? If I want an instant Steampunk look, I go for the flat silver ribbed hoses. Also, all the Star Wars windscreens/ dishes add a lot. I try to stay away from using too much reddish brown and gray, though.

You have a very unique presentation in your MOCs. Tell us how you achieve your ‘look’? Graphic design plays a huge part in my day job, so I’m used to working with Photoshop. I try to add a background to the model which puts it into context, thereby adding to the overall image, but not diverting too much attention from the actual model.

The Marlin

Here I really started thinking of backstories to my MOCs. I figured: “What would be the fastest way to get people across the seas?“ Trying to stay with my fish-theme, I thought of a Marlin-shaped high-speed submarine. Real Marlins are some of the most beautiful animals on this planet, and exude this certain power. And did I already say, I love Dark Blue? I tried to explore all those interesting Blue and Dark Blue slopes a recent Bricklink order presented to me. Together with Pearl Gold and the muted Light Gray they formed an awesome color combination, really letting every accent stand out. I like the way the eye/window turned out, and was once again amazed by the LEGO design team, seeing that that wheel fit that canopy.

A decent presentation of my MOCs is just as important as designing it in the first place. You see a lot of builders waste otherwise great models with sloppy photos. It’s obviously a matter of how “hardcore“ you want to get with your hobby, but at some point it’s useful to divert the money for two or three Bricklink orders into proper lighting equipment. You really, really like fish! Why fish? Man, I hate fish! I really do. Get your sushi from out of my face! (laughs) Then again, from a pure aesthetic standpoint, they are really beautiful—all the sleek forms and vibrant colors. Also, the ocean is one of the last frontiers on Earth. Who knows what hides down there? Since I felt as if the nautical angle was way top under-represented in Steampunk, and the air was overcrowded by blimps and airships, I figured I’d go exploring the deep abyss. Actually, besides hating fish, I’m also scared of the deep dark blue, so maybe there’s a psychological coping mechanism at work here? It’s somewhat like my LEGO collection in this respect. The pieces have always been there, but sometimes you just have to dive deep to find them. And when you fish out (pun intended) a cool piece you own, but didn’t know you did, you can’t just throw it back in now, can you? Do you build with any brick-based design programs or is it all by hand? I only build by hand. I spend way too much time behind a screen in my day job, so the tactical sensation of building by hand is the truly satisfying part behind it all. Also, when I tried building with LDD, I easily got frustrated with some pieces that wouldn’t click like they would with a gentle push of two hands. Then again: for professional builders or AFOLs operating on a tight budget, these are great tools, and some of the renderings look like the “real thing.” They usually just don’t “feel“ right.

The Narwhale

This was my first model coming out of my “Dark Age.” Still had a rather limited amount of pieces to work with, and was trying SNOT for the first time. Do you keep your models assembled? No. I have a hard time seeing a model through to the photo date as is, and not start picking off certain bricks I need for new ideas. Also, I don’t have the space needed. The deal at home is: The kids let daddy have fun building, try not to jump too much while I’m taking pictures, and then they can have fun and play with it— meaning “destroy it in ten seconds.” With a background in graffiti art, I’m used to the concept of “fast living art.” The fun is in the doing, not in the owning. Non-artists usually have a hard time with this concept, I noticed over the years. Great thing we have social media, though! What is your favorite MOC and why? As stated before, the “Nautilus“ by Orion Pax is my “holy grail“! Also, there’s a white cruise airship by Vincent Toulouse which inspired me immensely, for it has great NPU, his signature sleek curves, and a really novel look away from the usual aesthetic. Among the recently more active builders, W. Navarre, Lego7, among others, are always up to something fun. Among the pro levels, Arjan Oude Kotte and his ships are on a whole ‘nother level, and have inspired my to dabble into some scale modeling myself. Scale modeling helps you with understanding and achieving believable shapes and technical details, which is also highly important in Steampunk, I think. Some builders tend to add the odd cogwheel or gold ornament just for effect’s sake. A really good MOC has to do more for me, though. Share with us some highlights of your MOCS. Unfortunately my engineering skills leave much to be desired—I never was much of a LEGO Technic guy in the first place—so the play functions in my MOCs are rather rudimental. I always try to build out the interiors though, adding to the “real“ feeling of the model. The right minifig can do wonders, too. As for parts, I found the UFO saucer parts challenging to work with, but then this was a while ago. Maybe I need to bring those back out again, revisiting new uses. Anything else you want to make sure folks know about you or your models? Turning my first hobby into my day-job left me longing for a new fulfilling hobby. Now building challenges my artistic mind in ways commercial painting can’t. (It has the added bonus of little risk of injury, aside from the occasional broken fingernail, as my other sports hobbies would have had, and much to my family’s liking, I’m at home more.) Building is like 3D-painting to me, and follows the same creative process I use when conceiving of a mural. The right idea always comes first, the ways to get there are always vary, and end up never the way you expected them—that’s the fun part. As with painting, color blocking, proportions, and what I call “swing“, are essential to a good model, I think. Also, like a great piece of art, it has to tell an interesting story for me to really feel it. I just hope folks have as much fun looking at my builds and exploring all their details, as I have fun in the building process. The feedback I’ve gotten has been really great so far, and I find it quite humbling. It feels good when you can be of inspiration to others, just as they have been to you. Be on the lookout for “Full Steam“ on my FlickR or Instagram soon!

People

Steampunk Spotlight: Austen Henry-Biskup and Pamela Henry-Biskup’s Metalbeard’s Compound Article by Guy Himber Photography by Patrick Biggs, Maddison Stapleton, and Joe Meno 28

Pamela and Austen Henry-Biskup are mother and son and also LEGO builders. Pamela loves reading, design, fashion and is a British crime drama enthusiast, while Austen plays paintball, ultimate, loves drawing and is now applying to colleges. Both created Metalbeard’s compound, a Steampunkthemed layout inspired by the character in The LEGO Movie. BrickJournal talked to them about their creation. BrickJournal: How long have you each been building? Did you have a Dark Age? If so, what got you building again? Austen and Pamela Henry-Biskup: We have been working together for about three years. Austen never had a Dark Age. He got his first LEGO set from my mom when he was five. It was a red fire truck and he hasn’t stopped building since. He decided in middle school to build his first large scale build, a castle, which he took to Brick Cascades in 2014. Pamela had a very long Dark Age and only started building with Austen because she was spending all her time supporting him anyway. Our first big MOC together was King Kong: Skull Island which won “Best Picture” at Brickcon 2015 in the screen scenes category and “The Emmet” from the art category at Brick Cascades. How does your partnership work? Who is the principal designer, builder and “idea guy”? Division of labor? What does your pre-planning and research look like? Does anyone else in the family build with LEGO? Austen is, without a doubt, the main designer. Pamela started out almost more like an intern on King Kong. We are both idea people which sometimes causes difficulty. We have come up with our main ideas, mostly, together. It’s in the realization of those ideas that we have to work together to get all or most of our own visions into a MOC. Austen loves movement and kinetic functions in LEGO and is fully responsible for getting moving functions working on the MOC, even if the idea originated from Pamela. With so many moving parts on this

Metalbeard’s, you can imagine what a bear it was to keep it all running. We have never had the luxury of having any time for pre-planning so we generally have had a rough baseplate layout and lots of ideas in our heads and moved forward from there. We have learned that we actually prefer to have a pretty loose plan for building as it’s more organic and open to change. We also always have a backstory to our MOCs which we feel really helps to inform our design decisions. Stefan Henry-Biskup, who is our father and husband, has been our great patron since the beginning. He sometimes builds Technic sets, especially when we drag him to conventions and he gets bored. Let’s talk about the MOC itself. Why did you choose this topic to build? What gave you the initial idea to build such a large MOC? How long to complete it? How many bricks? How much money in parts? What are the general dimensions of the display and weight? Metalbeards came about because we loved the Sea Cow LEGO set and were so excited that LEGO had finally attempted to do Steampunk. And also because we just loved the character of the Pirate Metalbeard in the movie. It bothered us that he just kind of appeared in his ship, saved everyone, and then sort of disappeared again. We wanted more so we decided to give him a backstory. We started with just the “Metalbeard’s Castle” MOC. We built it in four months between Brickcon 2015 and Brick Cascades 2016. Even to this day we aren’t really sure how we finished it in that amount of time. It was crazy times. I’m not sure we thought in the beginning that it would end up as large as it did. We started at the bottom which is an island in the ocean and worked our way up. One funny fact is we finished the island base, which took almost half the time, and realized we hadn’t left space for an entry, which is why the main entry for the castle is an elevator and bridge over to the castle. We don’t really know how many bricks were involved but since it was so intricately detailed, we do know it was a lot. We chose from the beginning not to track the cost as we didn’t want the cost to deter our creativity. Stefan and Pamela felt that as long as we could eat and pay bills we were okay. I can tell you that the price tag was definitely high. When we started, gold and silver pieces were scarce and expensive. We spent a lot of money on Bricklink orders for sure. We really lucked out halfway through the build as the LEGO Ninjago Sky Pilots sets, which were basically all Steampunk, started coming out, which meant we could all of a sudden get the pieces we needed pretty easily. At the Bricks Cascades show we found out we could apply for the Special Exhibitor program at Bricks by the Bay, in which they would help us get the MOC down to Santa Clara. We then foolishly decided that the Pirate Metalbeard needed a theme park attached to the castle and it needed to be again finished in four months. That’s how “Sea Garden” came about and really, it was Austen’s obsession with roller

coasters and our shared obsession with LEGO Monorail systems that got the ball rolling. In planning for the amusement park, Austen designed a Matterhorn-inspired roller coaster using the original third party Coaster Dynamics rail set. I got inspired by the hot air balloon/zeppelin LEGO piece to design our merry-go-round. Luckily Austen had the knowledgebase to complete the ride. We wanted to make a funhouse but ran out of space and time. Again, Sea Garden required a lot of specialized pieces ($$$) but we ran into a crazy good deal on eBay of a guy getting rid of his LEGO collection and got it all for about four cents a piece. The general dimensions of Metalbeard’s compound was roughly five feet deep, 14 feet long and the castle at the top of the mast was about five-and-a-half feet tall. What did you learn about building as this scale? The importance of planning for transportation. And while we did try to plan for movement, we ended up with too many large heavy pieces anyway. Also, you have to be very committed to build at this scale, especially in light of the time and money drain that occurs. What was the hardest part about building at this scale? Do you keep it assembled at home? The hardest parts of large scale building for us are transportation, piece acquirement, time, money, and space. We never had the entire Compound up at our house as it was 14 feet long. Sadly, what is left of Metalbeard’s are two large carcass pieces in our garage that we have been scavenging off of since March 2017. How do you transport it? How long does it take to set up? We could move just the castle in the car, but once we added the theme park, we had to rent a van to move it around. Sadly, the set-up time for Metalbeard’s Compound was stressful and time-intensive, but it always paid off. It had so many moving parts, and the Monorail and coaster which had to be broken down every time. The first time we took the Compound to Bricks By The Bay, our set-up time was about six hours, I think. Unfortunately, we left it all in the boxes after that show, not realizing how much damage had occurred in transit, so when we got to Brickcon, it took ten long hours to get it back together, and at Bricks Cascades as well. The long, arduous set-up time is probably what killed the MOC. After Bricks Cascades 2017, we were so sick of it, we chose reusing the pieces over trying to save it. What is your favorite feature or element of the environment? Pamela’s favorite elements: • Austen’s amazing design on the castle, and everything, really • Austen’s creation and use of all the moving parts • My merry-go-round design • Steampunk Monorail

Austen’s favorite elements:

I love the whole thing, but to be specific: • The roller coaster • The craziness of the castle • Steampunk Monorail • Central Generator/Power Source Have you, or do you plan to, build more things in the Steampunk style? We do not have any current Steampunk projects at the moment, but as we had such an enjoyable time working with the theme, there will definitely be more MOCS in the future. There is so much freedom in building in the Steampunk style. The only real constraints are the color palette. How has your experience been with the LEGO community and convention attendees? Favorite convention? In our experience we have found both support amongst the LEGO community and we have also felt exclusivity that we don’t care for. This is why, at conventions, we have always spent a lot of time with our MOCs, trying to be open and approachable to the public and attendees. Even going so far as putting up little signs that say “we answer questions.” By acting in this manner people, especially kids, feel safe to ask questions and to realize that we’re just average people doing what we love. It is very rewarding to see a kid’s eyes light up with possibility. Brick Cascades is our hometown convention so it will always have a special place in our hearts. We like Brickcon because we feel that it really challenges us to be better builders. However we would be remiss if we didn’t give a shout out to Bricks By the Bay Convention in Santa Clara for making us feel so warmly embraced and welcomed in the Summer of 2016. Lastly, we have felt so much enthusiastic support from the YouTube channel “Beyond the Brick”. Josh and John have made a video of almost everything we have done. Metalbeard’s Compound can be seen here: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=BgCq3Is2WnI&t=433s What are your favorite themes? I don’t think we have a favorite theme. We have always decided what we wanted to build in general and then designed the MOCs within the best fitting theme.

Metalbeard’s Compound

Our story begins where The LEGO Movie leaves off. President Business is now working with all minifigures to defeat his former micro-managers and bots that have gone rogue. Since Cloud Cuckoo Land has been destroyed, MetalBeard’s castle “Sea Haus” has become a sanctuary for all Master Builders who strive to fight the evil that still lingers on.

Sea Garden

Sea Garden was a Steampunk theme park consisting of a working roller coaster, a merry-go-round and Victorian style Monorail stop all run by seven power functions. The roller coaster was built using the original LEGO-compatible Coaster Dynamics track system with a small Technic chain to pull the cars up the lift hill. The coaster weaved in and out of a mountain much like The Matterhorn ride at Disneyland. The merry-go-round was innately detailed with golden dragon heads and Steampunk hot-air balloons that independently moved up and down. Rounding out the theme park were dancing and partying master builders.

Power Generator

The generator was a crazy Steampunk contraption heavily inspired by a large off-shore oil-rig. It had four Power Functions motors moving a power orb, exposed gears and fiery wind turbines. The generator was surrounded by the track of a Steampunk Monorail transporting guests from the castle to the theme park.

Sea Haus Castle

Sea Haus Castle is a three-level all LEGO brick castle made in a Steampunk style primarily of brown, gray and gold and silver bricks. It was built in a manner that imitated the awesome chaos of the Pirate Metalbeard’s ship in The LEGO Movie. The castle was placed on a rocky island in the middle of the ocean; hidden as any good pirate’s lair should be. The foundation had many exposed gears and parts that were driven by power functions motors to give the look of industrialized automation. It had three distinct levels with the top boasting a mast and helm complete with a ship’s wheel. The sides had many balconies with a spiral staircase, minifig-size chess board, and Emmet’s double-decker couch. Coming off two corners were a landing pad for the Chopper-Copter, a magical Steampunk vehicle, and an outcropping with a giant gatling gun. There were three more motorized parts such as a waterfall, an exhaust fan and a small windmill off to the side of the castle. Lastly, in homage to the man, the myth and legend himself, was a giant statue of Metalbeard.

People

Venice 1486.

Steampunk Spotlight:

Jonas Kramm Interview by Guy Himber Photography by Jonas Kramm

Jonas Kramm is a 22-year-old builder who is also a graphic design student from Germany. He started building as a toddler, beginning with Duplo, then going over to LEGO when he was old enough. His obsession with the bricks grew as he got older, and in 2009, at the age of 13 discovered the LEGO fan community and started participating online and physically at events. While he had and still has times where he can’t spend as much time with the bricks as he would like to, LEGO building has always been part of his life and he never had a Dark Age. His work can be found on jonaskramm.com or on Instagram @jonaskramm. BrickJournal talked to him about his Steampunk builds.

BrickJournal: What is your favorite theme and why? What inspired you to start building your own models? Jonas Kramm: The LEGO Castle theme was definitely my favorite when I was a kid and I got various sets to play with. Many battles of good versus evil got fought in my room, but while growing older, my interest shifted over to building my own models rather than playing. These days I only buy sets to get pieces for my own creations. I don’t collect any specific themes, but was really pleased about the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit sets, because of the beautiful Minifigures. When I build my own creations I don’t stay with any themes, but build whatever inspires me. I love to challenge myself and to push myself out of my comfort zone. To do so I participate in building competitions, such as the Iron Builder. How do you design your models? I don’t have a strict schedule for my designing process. It usually starts with something inspiring: a movie, a picture, a game or something I see on the street or on vacation. When that idea has the potential to become a visually appealing creation, I often start with the detail that is the crux, and that has to be spot on. At that point I also think about what colors I will use and how they work together.

Steampunk AT-TE

Next to the use of ladders for the body hull the highlight of this model is the steam engine that makes use of two cauldrons.

When I’m building it’s actually a back-and-forth with trying different building techniques and color combinations to see what works best. I always try to avoid ordering bricks for a project and therefore only use the bricks that I have currently available. Over the years, this limitation has helped me to be more creative. What’s your favorite creation? My favorite creation of all time is my Venice 1486 from Assassin’s Creed 2, as seen on the previous page. I really enjoyed playing with the iconic architecture and beautiful colors here. The Steampunk creation I like the most has to be my Slave 1885, which I built for a Steampunk Star Wars contest in 2014. What is it about the Steampunk theme and style that you find so appealing/inspiring? I discovered Steampunk through the LEGO community, as I was stumbling over the builds from Guy Himber and Tyler Clites on Flickr. What inspires me most about Steampunk is the fact that you build something that has to fit in this fictional universe. You have to be very creative and pay attention to detail, so your creation really looks like it could be part of the Steampunk world. Steampunk is not just rebuilding something in brown and gold for me, but to rethink the purpose of your building and the way it could actually work with a steam engine and without technology we have today.

Steampunk Batcave

The Batcave was one of my first Steampunk builds and my first mash-up. For the wooden Tumbler I used doors as the windshield and knight helmets for wheels. Batman got some Victorian looks thanks to his classic top hat with additional bat ears. Fun to build was also the stream of water, made of a fibre optic cable.

What do you think is the future of Steampunk? Personally I want to continue my idea of bringing more color into Steampunk. Often the concept of Steampunk is mistaken with just building something in brown and adding gears, but I think it has way more capability. I feel like we don’t see that much Steampunk in the LEGO community as in the era around 2011, so maybe it’s time for some Steampunk contests to bring it back and to let the new builders know what this genre is and how cool it is. What Steampunk things do you look forward to building in the future? I don’t have any plans right now, but I’m sure I will do so. I loved building Steampunk crossovers with Star Wars, Batman and Blade Runner, so maybe something in that direction. Or I will give my Trumpet Bug some other Steampunk insects as companions. We will see. What dream part(s) should LEGO provide us to expand the Steampunk theme? I think LEGO is already producing enough different pieces and while I really like to discover new elements in sets, I can’t name a single part that I’m missing.

Color-wise I would love to have more parts available in copper, as it would be a great addition to many Steampunk builds. At the moment it’s very hard to integrate, because there are only a few pieces available in that color.

Blade Runner 1849

For my Steampunk Blade Runner I played with a new color scheme of dark blue and black.

Flying Erwin

Ever wondered where the classy Victorian salesman gets his weekly newspaper, or the worker buys his spirits? The Flying Erwin is a kiosk traveling from town to town to supply the citizens of 1880 with all odds and ends.

This build was done in collaboration with my good friend and fellow builder Jonas Kleinalstede. Our idea was to create a flying shop with a whimsical look and many small details. To point out a few: White snake as smoke and a balloon made of a planet and a half-rock.

What are the most Steampunk LEGO parts you like to build with? Every piece is a Steampunk piece, when you are creative enough—at least, when it comes in Steampunk colors. But some of my favorite pieces for details have to be the golden turban pin with jewel from the genie Minifigure, the metallic silver mechanical arm from the robot Minifigure, and the brown peg leg from the pirate figures.

Furthermore, while being pretty rare, the hook, also from the Pirate’s Captain, is a versatile piece for small details. One part I haven’t used yet in a Steampunk creation, but am looking forward to playing around with, is the golden swirled ornament (28870), that came with the LEGO Elves sets in 2017. It really screams for Steampunk.

Steampunk Kraken

The challenge here was to come up with a tentacle design, which looks good, but is also sturdy enough and completely poseable. Lots of Hero Factory amour pieces and Minifigure shields came in handy.

Slave 1885

My Steampunk rendition of the iconic Slave 1 from Star Wars was built for a Steampunk Star Wars contest on From Bricks To Bothans, and is one of my favorite Steampunk creations. I tried my best to make it look as if it actually could fly. To do so, I built most parts of the hull only as frame, to make the ship lighter. A highlight is also the detailed interior with an armchair as the driver’s seat.

Trumpet Bug

Inspired by concept art I stumbled over online, this is the mash-up of a bug and an instrument. The challenge was to fit both themes into one build, so the trumpet and the bug are both very visible. A fun detail to integrate was the use of saxophones in the legs.

People

Vince Paver:

Making Steampunk Minifigures

Article and Photography by Vince Paver

My love affair with Steampunk began way back in the ’80s. I was a little lad at home watching the telly on a Saturday afternoon when a matinee screening of the classic 1969 movie Captain Nemo and the Underwater City began. The Underwater City of Meereen had me spellbound with its ornate golden structure and other worldly appearance. I didn’t know it at the time but this was my first introduction to Steampunk! Some readers may not really know what Steampunk is exactly, so I’ll try to explain. Steampunk is a subgenre of science-fiction combining the fashions and aesthestics of 19th century western civilization (most usually England but also the Wild West) with retro-futuristic inventions as people of the time might have thought to construct them. Usually these are steam-powered machines like helicopters or airships or perhaps clockwork automatons and devices such as robots or cars. Here’s an example of one such creation, a robot with his Mistress I made a while back:

The LEGO Group has made a quite a few forays into the world of Steampunk. In 2013 the LEGO Master Builder Academy (level 4) was the most direct, although you can see nods to them in the Monster Fighters series of 2012 and the rather wacky Time Cruisers sets way back in ’96…. check out the Flying Time Vessel, #6493! The traditional look and feel of Steampunk is to use quite muted colors; it’s most commonly associated with coppers, browns and golds. If you are looking to add a splash of color, then dark reds, greens and purple make excellent accents for the other earthy tones.

Victorian English gents had a penchant for facial hair, so beards, sideburns, and short haircuts were the norm. Hats, and specifically top hats, were the mark of a man. Shirt collars, waist coats and neck ties of all descriptions make a solid base for any figbarf (custom minifigure group display) you might embark upon.

These folks are styled more towards the Wild West.

In general, ladies dress in a very conservative manner with longer dresses and tied-back hair or bonnets, as the time was one of quite proper behavior. Mixing prim fashion with industrial accessories can give you some quite pleasing results.

The beauty of making Steampunk minifigure combos is that you can find parts in almost any theme. In the two examples above we have Star Wars, Super-Hero, Castle, Space, City, Pirates, Harry Potter and Lord Of The Rings to name a few. The only limitation of finding parts within a theme is your imagination!

Are you looking for inspiration to build your minifigs? There are many films, books and computer games that can inspire you. Try watching 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea or reading H.G Wells’ The Time Machine—or why not have a blast on Bioshock Infinite? One of the things I like to do is to look at figures from history and reimagine their lives in a Steampunk setting. A number of my creations take this form, like this Steampunk circus figbarf I built after reading about the life of P.T Barnum, the greatest showman.

If you feel your Steampunk figs are getting a little tired, try putting a fresh take on them. Changing up the basis of your theme a little can reinvigorate them— Pirates are fun, but how about Zombie Steampunk Zeppelin Pirates?

Or how about Innovator Nikolai Tesla?

You can even steer well clear of the muted browns and blacks for bright colors like white or blue. Just make sure you really commit. One way to do this is to combine Steampunk with a completely different theme! What could be more fun than super-heroes? Steampunk Super-Heroes!

As you will notice, very few of my creations are purist. There are a large number of awesome parts you can get from custom houses around the globe. Below I will include a glossary of some of my favorites that can spice up your figs. I often use rubber bands, judicious use of Sharpie (gasp!) and a little stressing on arm joints (it can cause torso and limb breakage) to add a bit more variation to my figure posing. One of the greatest inventions I have had the pleasure to find is that of V&A Steelworks’ Crazy Arms. These bad boys allow you to pose your minifigs in a variety of new poses without the requirement of repeated removal and replacement of TLG arms. Why not check out some of these custom houses? You can find all manner of garb, gun and gadget to level up your figs! I’ve put my fave finds at the below sites! http://brickarms.com - Rayguns, weapons and serious overmolds. http://brickforge.com - Test tubes, gas masks, violins and weapons aplenty. http://brickwarriors.com - Hats, pipes power claws and chainsaw hands. http://capes4minifigs.com - A trenchcoat or waistcoat for all occasions. http://crazybricks.com - The Daddy of stovepipe hats and home of the mechtorians! https://minifigcat.com/shop/ - Gasmasks, belts and all manner of gadgets! You can find me on flickr here: https://www.flickr.com/people/strawdog316/ I hope you have enjoyed this insight into my love of Steampunk!

People

The Polar Transport.

Steampunk Spotlight:

Vincent Gachod Article by Guy Himber Photography by Vincent Gachod

Vincent Gachod is a 47-year-old who lives in Toulouse in southern France. He’s a video director in the audio visual department of a university, and also a LEGO Steampunk builder. He started building with his first set, the 374 Fire Station released in 1978. He had a Dark Age (where he didn’t build) but returned to building about ten years ago. BrickJournal chatted with him about his Steampunk builds.

BrickJournal: What is your favorite theme and why? Vincent Gachod: Steampunk and Dieselpunk are very inspiring universes, being a mix between science-fiction and retro art movements. I like those low-tech visions of the future. What inspired you to start building your own models? I’m inspired by a lot of influences (movies, animation, videos games, books, magazines, cars, architecture…) but I’m more inspired by the details: A car’s wheel, a plane’s engine or a vintage vacuum cleaner! I often start a MOC from a single detail like a car’s grille or an exhaust pipe. I spend a long time working on details. I also find some ideas in old magazines (like Popular Science from the ’30s). How do you design your models? No process, no rules, no plan, I put a brick on another one and the final idea of the MOC comes later. I usually build with a lot of various elements: A wheel, an engine, a wing, a pilot seat, before thinking about a plane or a car. I get a lot

F70 Double Falcon. Vincent’s rendition of a Steampunk motorcycle.

of ideas exploring the Bricklink catalog. Sometimes, I start a MOC with only one part because of its shape or color. Once I have one, I try all the combinations I can find with it. So, finishing a MOC takes me a long time and the final result is often completely different than the first idea. I like to find unusual ways to combine LEGO parts; it’s a real part of the game for me. And I never use custom bricks. What’s your favorite creation? Polar Transport is one of my favorite MOCs. The first idea was to use those Fabuland slides (part 4876) as exhaust elements. I later saw the cover of Popular Science #187 (1933) which inspired me for the vehicle’s concept. What other projects are you on now? I have several ideas for vehicles or planes but only details like aircraft engines or a wheel’s car. I also started a Pirates/ Steampunk diorama project. I’m looking for ideas for a pirate lair set-up in a shipwreck. It’s a collaborative project for a LEGO event in south of France. What is it about the Steampunk theme and style that you find so appealing/inspiring? First, I like the industrial design and art movements from the end of 19th century and beginning of 20th. Art Nouveau and Art Deco are very inspiring for shape, pattern, colors... And I like the main idea of Steampunk and Dieselpunk: an alternate vision of the present and future, only with technologies based on steam or gasoline. We can incorporate Steampunk into anything, real or fictional.

What do you think is the future of Steampunk? For me, Steampunk evolves along with the present. We can imagine a Steampunk version of anything: Hi-tech novelty, new concept vehicle, real or fictional. Computers, mobile phone, Star Wars ships, and the Batmobile have been already “Steampunkized” in LEGO. What Steampunk things do you look forward to building in the future? I’m more inspired to build vehicles and planes, but in the future, I want to try to build robots and mechas. What dream part(s) should LEGO provide us to expand the Steampunk theme? I would like some parts in specific colors: dark red, dark green, dark blue or dark gray for mechanical/technical elements. But I like to explore LEGO official parts possibilities to find a way to do what I want. What are the most Steampunk LEGO parts you like to build with? Any part could be “Steampunkized”, depending on how it is combined and integrated in the model. Perhaps some new printed minifigs torsos and headgears could be useful to create Steampunk characters. You have a very distinct and unique style. How did it develop and what do you think are its signature design principles? That’s difficult to answer; my stuff has been categorized as retro-future and I like this concept. I like to work with curves and it’s sometimes challenging with LEGO. I also prefer to use less saturated colors (dark colors, sand colors). Typically we think of brown and gold as the principal colors in Steampunk. How come you never use them? I use colors to simulate a painted model. Furthermore, brown simulates wood and I prefer a metal look. I use gold sometimes but often for a decorative element.

The Grasshopper.

Tell us about your building and design process. I have no objective when I play with LEGO. I like to spend time to explore parts possibilities. I always build with a lot of elements and details that will be part of a future model... or not.

The Mechanic.

I spend a long time trying various proportions of a model: The length of a wing, the width of a car’s wheel. Sometimes, I have to rebuild all the model to modify a single detail.

S80-Deluxe automobile.

What is your favorite MOC? Which MOC was the most challenging to build and why? The Grasshopper; it was very difficult to make it stand alone. Even with a support, it fell just after the photo! It’s difficult for me to build a nice support when a model needs it. Share with us some highlights of your MOCS. My models are rarely playable. Above all, my MOCS are dedicated to be photographed... and destroyed. Wheels of the Motorcycle don’t even turn, and the right side of the Polar Transport is not built (carefully hidden on the photos). Anything else you want to make sure folks know about you or your models? I regularly (very often in fact) check for new parts in the LEGO catalogue and inventories of new sets, in all themes (even Friends and Duplo!). You can find unexpected ideas with parts you usually leave behind. I have a lot of different parts (shapes or colors) and for 80% of my collection, I have less than ten copies of the same brick.

Tommy Williamson is no stranger to BrickJournal, having been featured previously for his Jack Sparrow miniland scale figure. Since then, he has gone farther into building, making some remarkable Star Trek props and other models. He’s now doing a column for BrickJournal: DIY Fan Art. Here, Tommy takes a little time out from his busy schedule at BrickNerd.com to make a model of his choosing for the magazine.

Steampunk Camera Design and Instructions by Tommy Williamson

About this issue’s model:

While I don’t really consider myself a Steampunk builder (this artifact is only my second build ever), I’ve always been a fan of it. With its earthy color palette, needlessly exposed mechanics, and turn-of-the-century sensibilities, it’s always fascinated me. I’m still waiting for a proper Steampunk movie, by the way; a few had promise, but ultimately disappointed. When it came time to sit down and design something for this issue, I decided to go to my photographic roots, and put together a camera Victoria herself would hopefully be smitten with. I hope you enjoy it. If you’re viewing a Digital Edition of this publication,

PLEASE READ THIS: This is copyrighted material, NOT intended for downloading anywhere except our website or Apps. If you downloaded it from another website or torrent, go ahead and read it, and if you decide to keep it, DO THE RIGHT THING and buy a legal download, or a printed copy. Otherwise, DELETE IT FROM YOUR DEVICE and DO NOT SHARE IT WITH FRIENDS OR POST IT ANYWHERE. If you enjoy our publications enough to download them, please pay for them so we can keep producing ones like this. Our digital editions should ONLY be downloaded within our Apps and at

www.twomorrows.com

Parts List

(Parts can be ordered through Bricklink.com by searching by part number and color)

Qty Part 2 2445.dat 1 3022.dat 1 3069b.dat 3 3176.dat 2 3795.dat 2 6141.dat 1 4282.dat 1 22385.dat 6 25269.dat 2 87580.dat

Color White White White White White White White White White White

1 2 2 1 20 4 3 1

3021.dat 3176.dat 3626b.dat 3832.dat 6141.dat 3001.dat 3176.dat 3747a.dat

Red Red Red Red Yellow Black Black Black

98138.dat

Black

Description Plate 2 x 12 Plate 2 x 2 Tile 1 x 2 with Groove Plate 3 x 2 with Hole Plate 2 x 6 Plate 1 x 1 Round Plate 2 x 16 Tile 3 x 2 with Angled End Tile 1 x 1 Corner Round Plate 2 x 2 with Groove with 1 Centre Stud Plate 2 x 3 Plate 3 x 2 with Hole Minifig Head with Hollow Stud Plate 2 x 10 Plate 1 x 1 Round Brick 2 x 4 Plate 3 x 2 with Hole Slope Brick 33 3 x 2 Inverted without Ribs between Studs Tile 1 x 1 Round with Groove

LEGO fans: You Can Build It!

YOU CAN BUILD IT is a new ongoing series of instruction books on the art of LEGO® custom building, from the producers of BRICKJOURNAL magazine! Spinning off from BrickJournal’s popular “You Can Build It” column, these FULL-COLOR books are loaded with nothing but STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS by some of the top custom builders in the LEGO fan community. BOOK ONE is for beginning-to-intermediate builders, with instructions for custom creations including Miniland figures, a fire engine, a tulip, a spacefighter (below), a street vignette, plus miniscale models from “a galaxy far, far away,” and more! BOOK TWO has even more detailed projects to tackle, including advanced Miniland figures, a miniscale yellow castle, a deep sea scene, a mini USS Constitution, and more! So if you’re ready to go beyond the standard LEGO sets available in stores and move into custom building with the bricks you already own, this ongoing series will quickly take you from novice to expert builder, teaching you key building techniques along the way!

(84-page FULL-COLOR Trade Paperbacks) $9.95 • (Digital Editions) $4.95

BOTH BOOKS ARE NOW AVAILABLE!

TwoMorrows—A New Day For LEGO Fandom.

TwoMorrows Publishing • 10407 Bedfordtown Drive • Raleigh, NC 27614 USA • 919-449-0344 • FAX: 919-449-0327 E-mail: store@twomorrowspubs.com • Visit us on the Web at www.twomorrows.com

Building

zŽƵ ĂŶ ƵŝůĚ /ƚ D/E/ DŽĚĞů

LASERbot (Lantern Assisted Submarine Electronic Robot) Design and Instructions by Ellen Kooijman

Guest designer Ellen Kooijman is best known for designing LEGO Research Institute and co-designing LEGO The Big Bang Theory. She is also lead designer at BRICKYT.COM, which produces high quality custom LEGO creations including kits, instructions and commissioned builds.

Dr. Kooijman has moved up a gear with her latest clockwork innovation. The LASERbot is quite the fascinating creature, possessing some of the most highly-developed capabilities in the sea. This denizen of the ocean’s deepest realms attracts enemies with the comforting glow of its lantern, only to surprise them with the stunning capability of the high-energy laser gun hidden behind its fangs.

Parts List (Parts can be ordered from Bricklink.com by searching by part number and color) Qty 2

Part

Description

Qty

Color

Part

Description

2 1 2 3 6

Light Bluish Grey 4740 Dish 2 x 2 Inverted (Radar) Light Bluish Grey 3647 Technic, Gear 8 Tooth Type 1 Dark Bluish Grey 6541 Technic Brick, 1 x 1 with Hole

Dark Bluish Grey 3023 Plate 1 x 2 Plate, Modified 1 x 1 with Clip Dark Bluish Grey 61252 Horizontal (thick open O clip) Plate Special 1 x 1 with Clip Dark Bluish Grey 4085d Vertical (Thick Open O Clip) Brick Special 1 x 1 with Dark Bluish Grey 4070 Headlight and No Slot Slope Curved 2 x 1 No Studs Dark Bluish Grey 11477 (1/2 Bow) Dark Bluish Grey 3700 Technic Brick 1 x 2 (1 Hole) Brick Curved 2 x 2 x 2/3 Two Dark Bluish Grey 47457 Studs, Curved Slope End Dark Bluish Grey 15068 Slope Curved 2 x 2 x 2/3 Slope, Inverted 33 3 x 2 with Dark Bluish Grey 3747b Connections between Studs

2 2

Black Black

Brick 1 x 2 Plate Round 1 x 1 with Open 85861 Stud Plate, Modified 1 x 1 with Clip 61252 Horizontal (thick open O clip) Bar 1L with Clip (Cut Edges and 48729b One Side Hole) Plate Special 1 x 1 with Clip 4081b Light (Thick Ring) 3705 Technic Axle 4

Black

3022

Black

1 1

Black Black

1 1

Black Black

6 4

Pearl Gold Pearl Gold

2488 Minifig Whip (aka Plant Vine) 4589b Cone 1 x 1 (Top Groove) Bar 4L (Lightsaber Blade / 30374 Wand) 4740 Dish 2 x 2 Inverted (Radar) Plate Round 1 x 1 with Solid 4073 Stud 53451 Barb Small (Helmet Horn)

Pearl Gold

4589b Cone 1 x 1 (Top Groove)

Pearl Gold

Dark Bluish Grey 47759 Wedge 2 x 4 Triple Plate Round 2 x 2 with Dark Bluish Grey 2654 Rounded Bottom (Boat Stud)

Pearl Gold

87747 Barb Large (Claw, Horn) Plate Special 1 x 2 (Side Handle 48336 Closed Ends)

Dark Bluish Grey 3022 Plate 2 x 2

Trans-Clear

3023

Dark Bluish Grey 3021 Plate 2 x 3 Plate Special 1 x 2 with 1 Stud Dark Bluish Grey 15573 with Groove (Jumper) Dark Bluish Grey 3003 Brick 2 x 2

Trans-Clear

Plate 1 x 2 Brick Round 1 x 1 Solid Stud, 3062b No Bottom Groove

1 1

Trans-Clear Trans-Yellow

4740 4073

2 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1

1 1

Color

Light Bluish Grey 4274 Technic, Pin 1/2 Technic Gear 24 Tooth (New Light Bluish Grey 3648 Style with Single Axle Hole) Light Bluish Grey 4697b Pneumatic T Piece New Style

Dark Bluish Grey 3004

Black

Plate 2 x 2 Tile, Modified 1 x 1 with Clip 15712 Rounded Edgeses

Dish 2 x 2 Inverted (Radar) Plate, Round 1 x 1 Straight Side

6 1x

1x 1x

3 2x

4 1x

1x 1x

2x 59

10 1x

2x 1x

13 2x 2x

2x 1x

1x 2x

1x 1x

1x 61

Building Minifig Customization 101

Steampunk and Designing Small Details Article and Photography by Jared K. Burks Random Steampunk inspirational photos collected from the Internet.

Hello everyone, I am happy to be back and writing about custom LEGO minifigures. Today’s topic, Steampunk, represents a unique tiny detail challenge. Gears, gauges, gadgets, and gizmos appear everywhere on the fashionfrenzied Steampunk figure, construct, accessory, clank, and airship. All of this detail complicates creating custom figures in this theme, as we want our custom figures well equipped in order to invent and/or destroy their crazy creations, giant death-rays, massive clanks, and finally so they can repair their massive airships as cannonballs graze the support structures. In this issue, I am going to visit the lower limits of detail, which can be successfully incorporated into minifigure design. I am going to pull in some of my successes and failures over the years of designing custom figures to address where I was able to design small, and other locations where there is simply a limit. I will visit the LEGO standard as a point of reference and attempt to push the limits, which is ultimately always the goal of creating something new.

Art Formats: Raster vs. Vector

Before we begin talking about the detail levels, let us quickly review art formats. Essentially, there are two formats: Raster and Vector. Raster is based on the scale of a pixel. This is the format of photographs and it ultimately has a limiting value based on the number and size of the pixel(s) used to create it. There are ways to upscale images to include more pixels, but often these are computer algorithms guessing, and the results are variable in their success. The second format, vector, is based on mathematics. This means it has no limit on resolution. You can, in theory, infinitely zoom in and always see a space between closely adjacent objects. As we commonly design in Vector for better printing resolution, it also fools us into believing we can always print what we see. We can not— the technology employed to print our creations has limitations, typically based on the smallest drop size of ink that can be formed, but also on the spread of said ink on the substrate we are placing it on. We have to keep this in mind, which LEGO does well, as they have been creating figures for years, and thus starting with the LEGO standard is a wise review.

The LEGO Standard: The ID Badge

To begin, let us visit the LEGO standard. A common item in almost any mad scientist lab, be it in the Steampunk universe or reality, is the identification badge. Everyone needs to know who to shoot with the death rays and who belongs in the danger zone of creation. In the last few years, the LEGO ID badge has evolved slightly. LEGO has been watching our creations and has started to add additional levels of detail to their designs, which is a strong positive. I am including a version of the classic LEGO ID badge and images of several figures featuring these badges below. When we examine this badge, notice text is avoided at this scale. This is a rule I have broken many times, however normally to my detriment.

Overdesign

When designing we can be emotionally attached to an aesthetic or an original concept where we want our custom figure as accurate as possible. This can ultimately cause issues as we do not always use a critical eye and we end up adding detail that is not possible to capture. In the two examples above from the TV show Chuck, I actually used an official photo of the actor and fonts that were simply too small to be legible. We have to follow the LEGO example of scaling up and reducing detail to achieve better custom figures. Flo (right) is much more successful; even though the badge and button contain actual text, the badge and button are over-scaled to ensure the text is legible and prints well.

The LEGO standard ID badge with recent modernized versions. LEGO has started to add a touch of text, but generally only one line.

Above are examples of overdesign, compared to Flo at right.

Adding Accessories on the Design

In the first example on the left, we see the addition of two test tubes filled with liquid in his pocket. As an actual scientist in real life, I can tell you no one does this, and if they are crazy enough to do so, these tubes would have lids, so LEGO missed a detail point, but I digress. Noticed that LEGO used liquid in the tubes and had the tube and the liquid conform to gravity. They also placed the tubes on an angle to add additional interest. In the second example, LEGO has added quite a bit of detail, or so it seems, but the basic outfit has essentially no detail. Because of this balance between the climbing gear, belts, and radio, the design is complete, but his hoodie is minimized to a central zipper and two strings from the neck. Also note the contrasting colors used to help bring attention to the layered design. Printed accessories on minifigures.

Now that we understand some of the lower limits of resolution in our designs, we need to visit the idea of “clutter”, which can be summed up as: How many items can we add and how much detail can each item employ if they are going to be recognizable? In the next set of examples, we will examine exactly that. So how do we put all this together into a successful Steampunk design? How do we outfit them to keep them appropriately equipped? Let’s start with looking at some gauges. I have previously shared a project I created for the Children’s Museum of Houston for Engineer’s Week where I was inspired by a concept space suit. This design could easily be converted to Steampunk-themed design by altering some of the colors and textures, but the key point I will use it for today is the gauge set that I designed for it. Notice the simplicity and color I used to substitute for fonts. By using the colors, I am able to give the idea of function without the need for small fonts, which wouldn’t print well at this scale.

Concept Space Suit Design

Tools

The next bit to visit is the addition of tools. Again, for the Children’s Museum of Houston I created a set of designs for mad inventors around Halloween (ie. mad scientists!). I used an old design for Luke Skywalker and a simple overall design and added touches to give them the tools that they may need. I actually used the same set of tools for both figures, just in different manners. Tools.

Come back next issue for more Minifigure Customization!

Finishing the Steampunk Figure

There are so many options for accessories for Steampunk figures that I won’t dive too deeply here, but be sure to outfit them with death rays, wrenches, clocks, and even Technic gears. Be sure to visit the bronze and pearl grey colored parts from the Bionicle and other Technic-based figures, as those can be repurposed into many great accessories for Steampunk figures. Remember that steam tech is generally larger when created with all the details, so the oversized Bionicle parts fit perfectly for this purpose.

FROM THE PRODUCERS OF BRICKJOURNAL: The completed figure with accessories and tools.

LEGO fans: You Can Build It!

I hope this has been helpful, and ultimately before you spend too much time designing a figure, please take YOU CAN BUILD IT is a new ongoing series of instruction books on the art of LEGO® custom building, from the a moment and test-print the design. These test prints producers of BRICKJOURNAL magazine! Spinning off from can be critical to determine if you are adding too much BrickJournal’s popular “You Can Build It” column, these resolution—as your idea may be Steampunk gold, but if FULL-COLOR books are loaded with nothing but STEP-BYit doesn’t translate or if it ends up muddy because of poor STEP INSTRUCTIONS by some of the top custom builders print quality, the whole effect may be lost. This will also in the LEGO fan community. help you not become too emotionally attached to the idea, BOOK ONE offers instructions for custom creations as it is more of a work-in-progress as opposed to something including Miniland figures, a fire engine, a spacefighter you have spent hours-to-days working on, and then (below), a tulip, a street vignette, plus miniscale models struggle to rework because you are overly attached to it. from “a galaxy far, far away,” and more! BOOK TWO has even more custom projects to The simple, elegant solution is typically the best solution. tackle, including advanced Miniland figures, a miniscale yellow castle, a deep sea scene, a mini USS Constitution, and more! So if you’re ready to go beyond the standard LEGO sets available in stores and move into custom building with the bricks you already own, this ongoing series will quickly teach you key building techniques of the pros! (Recommended for ages 8 and above)

(84-page FULL-COLOR Trade Paperbacks) $9.95 (Digital Editions) $3.95 can view Jared’s webpage GET ALL THE PARTS FOR THE You SPACEFIGHTER SET by going www.fineclonier.com FROM BOOK ONE FOR ONLY to$5.95! or scanning this QR code!

Get both books on minifigure customizing! BRICKJOURNAL columnist JARED K. BURKS’ book MINIFIGURE CUSTOMIZATION: POPULATE YOUR WORLD! shows a wide range of techniques you can use to alter the lovable LEGO® Minifigure. And the sequel, MINIFIGURE CUSTOMIZATION2: WHY LIVE IN THE BOX?, offers even more techniques to alter minifigures! • Virtual customization, and designing decals • Custom part modification and creation • 3-D printing and painting techniques • Lighting with LEDs or EL wire • Ideas on displays and digital photography • Plus a custom gallery with tips & tricks! Don’t live inside the box—populate your world with any alien, superhero, historical, action, horror, or science-fiction figure you can “just imagine”!

(84-page FULL-COLOR Trade Paperbacks) $10.95 (Digital Editions) $4.95

TwoMorrows—A New Day For LEGO Fans!

TwoMorrows Publishing • 10407 Bedfordtown Drive • Raleigh, NC 27614 USA • 919-449-0344 • FAX: 919-449-0327 65 E-mail: twomorrow@aol.com • Visit us on the Web at www.twomorrows.com

You Can Build It MINI Model

Jabba’s Palace Mini Diorama Design and Instructions by Christopher Deck

Hello everybody, and welcome back to our next mini building session! Over the last months we have explored miniature diorama building, besides our ongoing training in miniature model design. In this issue we want to develop another epic scene from the core Star Wars trilogy together: Jabba’s Palace from Return of the Jedi. Jabba’s Palace resembles an arrangement of various round towers and domes with different diameters. With the release of the new 3x6 round plates (part number 18646) it is now possible to build perfectly round bases with a diameter of six studs, the perfect size for the palace’s main dome. And since the re-release of the 2x2 macaroni bricks in the year 2008, these round bricks are available in many new colors. Jabba’s Palace now can be realized as a group of circular buildings with two, four and six studs in diameter. A very well recognizable micro-model of Jabba’s Sailbarge, the Khetanna, rounds up the diorama of one of the most famous places in the Star Wars saga. Have fun building, and see you next time!

Parts List (Parts can be ordered from Bricklink.com by searching by part number and color)

Palace Towers Qty Color

Part

Description

3003.dat

Brick 2 x 2

3941.dat

Brick 2 x 2 Round

3960.dat

Dish 4 x 4 Inverted

3961.dat

Dish 8 x 8 Inverted

Trans-White

Tan

Dark-Tan

Lt-Bluish-Gray

1 1

Dark-Tan

Lit-Bluish-Gray Dark-Tan

Tan

Black

Lit-Bluish-Gray Lt-Bluish-Gray Lt-Bluish-Gray Tan

Sail Barge

44375b.dat Dish 6 x 6 Inverted with Solid Studs 86500.dat Dome 4 x 4 Smooth

18646.dat Plate 3 x 6 Round Half with 1 x 2 Cutout 6106.dat

Plate 6 x 6 without Corner

3707.dat

Technic Axle 8

3705.dat 6589.dat

Technic Axle 4

Technic Gear 12 Tooth Bevel

32198.dat Technic Gear 20 Tooth Bevel

3648b.dat Technic Gear 24 Tooth with One Axle Hole 15535.dat Tile 2 x 2 Round with Hole

Qty Color

Part

87087.dat Brick 1 x 1 with Stud on 1 Side

Reddish-Brown

4070.dat

Description

Brick 1 x 1 with Headlight

47905.dat Brick 1 x 1 with Studs on Two Opposite Sides

Pearl Light Gray 88811.dat Minifig Weapon Bladed Claw

Reddish-Brown

30367c.dat Cylinder 2 x 2 with Dome Top with Axle Hole and Hollow Stud

Dark-Bluish-Gray 30033.dat Plate 2 x 2 with Rod Frame Octagonal

Dark-Tan

85080.dat Brick, Round Corner 2 x 2 Macaroni with Stud Notch and Reinforced Underside

Dark-Bluish-Gray 4032a.dat Plate 2 x 2 Round with Axlehole Type 1

4 1

3062b.dat Brick 1 x 1 Round with Hollow Stud

2 1

Reddish-Brown

3024.dat

Orange

11477.dat Slope Brick Curved 2 x 1

Reddish-Brown

Plate 1 x 1

54200.dat Slope Brick 31 1 x 1 x 0.667 92946.dat Slope Plate 45 2 x 1

You can view Christopher’s webpage by going to www.deckdesigns.de or scanning this QR code!

crazybricks.com Your home for Crazy Arms and the best in custom minifigures!

Don’t just read BrickJournal —

BUILD WITH IT!

Designed by BrickJournal’s Editor-in-Chief JOE MENO, these custom sets are inspired by the themes and builders featured in this magazine! Find out about these sets and upcoming designs at: www.brickjournal.com/sets

Microscale Space Shuttle with Base: 50 pcs. $10 Mini EV3 set: 106 pcs. $25

Y-bot Mark I: 38 pcs. $7 Custom watercolor commissions: $100 Prints: $15 Lucky Dog: 57 pcs. $12 Minecreep: 75 pcs. $15

Building Sets

Microscale AH-64 Apache Copter: 103 pcs. $20

Order at: www.brickjournal.com/sets

These are not LEGO® products. They are reused LEGO elements that have been repackaged or altered from their original form. LEGO is a trademark of the LEGO Group, which does not sponsor, authorize or endorse these products. The LEGO Group is not liable for any loss injury, or damage arising from the use or misuse of these products.

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BRICKJOURNAL #47

BRICKJOURNAL #46

BRICKJOURNAL #45

40th ANNIVERSARY OF LEGO TECHNIC! GEOFF GRAY explores Technic history, JOE MENO interviews former LEGO Set Designer SØREN HOLM about the classic Technic Space Shuttle, MICHAEL BROWN shows off his Technic-scale AH-64, and more! Plus: Minifigure customizing from JARED K. BURKS’, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art, & more!

THE WORLD OF LEGO MECHA! Learn the secrets and tricks of building mechs with some of the best mecca builders in the world! Interviews with BENJAMIN CHEH, KELVIN LOW, LU SIM, FREDDY TAM, DAVID LIU, and SAM CHEUNG! Plus: Minifigure customizing from JARED K. BURKS’, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art, & more!

LEGO GOES UNDERSEA! Builder MITSURU NIKAIDO shows us his undersea creatures and organic builds! Then jump aboard MARCELLO DeCICCO’s minifigure-scale warships! And see amazing architectural creations by PEDRO NASCIMENTO! Plus: Minifigure customizing from JARED K. BURKS’, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art, & more!

LEGO TRAINS! Spotlight on train builder CALE LEIPHART, a look at the train layouts and models from the PENNSYLVANIA LEGO Users Group (PENNLug), BRICK MODEL RAILROADER (a new LEGO Train fan website that launched this year), and more locomotive action! Plus: Minifigure customizing from JARED K. BURKS’, stepby-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, & more!

FEMALE LEGO BUILDERS! US Architectural builder ANURADHA PEHRSON, British Microscale builder FERNANDA RIMINI, US Bionicle builder BREANN SLEDGE, and Norwegian Town builder BIRGITTE JONSGARD discuss their work and inspirations! Plus: Minifigure customizing from JARED K. BURKS’, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, & more!

(84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $4.95

BRICKJOURNAL #44

BRICKJOURNAL #43

BRICKJOURNAL #42

BRICKJOURNAL #41

BRICKJOURNAL #40

THEME PARK ISSUE! ERIK JONES’ custom LEGO version of Cinderella Castle, STÉPHANE DELY’s Disneyland Paris Sleeping Beauty Castle, and JOHN RUDY’s brick-built versions of your favorite theme park rides! Plus: Step-by step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art, Minifigure Customization with JARED K. BURKS, MINDSTORMS robotics lessons and more!

LEGO GAMING! IMAGINE RIGNEY’s Bioshock builds, NICK JENSEN’s characters and props from HALO and other video games, and GamerLUG member SIMON LIU builds LEGO versions of video game characters, spaceships and more! Plus: “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd’s DIY Fan Art, Minifigure Customization with JARED K. BURKS, MINDSTORMS robotics and more!

LEGO EDUCATION! See how schools and AFOLs build with the new WeDo, FIRST LEGO LEAGUE’s 2016 season explored (with national competitions at LEGOLand California), and robotics builders the Seshan Brothers take LEGO MINDSTORMS to the next level! Plus: Minifigure customizing from JARED K. BURKS’, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, & more!

OUT OF THIS WORLD LEGO! Spacethemed LEGO creations of LIA CHAN, 2001: A Space Odyssey’s Orion space plane by NICK DEAN, and Pre-Classic Space builder CHRIS GIDDENS! Plus: Orbit the LEGO community with JARED K. BURKS’ minifigure customizing, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art, MINDSTORMS robotics by DAMIEN KEE, and more!

LEGO MECHA! How to build giant robots and mechs with builders BENJAMIN CHEH MING HANN and KELVIN LOW, and SETH HIGGINS shows us his amazing transforming LEGO robots! And even cyborgs love Minifig Customization by JARED K. BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, DIY Fan Art by BrickNerd TOMMY WILLIAMSON, MINDSTORMS robotics lessons, and more!

(84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $4.95

BRICKJOURNAL #39

BRICKJOURNAL #38

BRICKJOURNAL #37

BRICKJOURNAL #36

BRICKJOURNAL #35

LEGO DINOSAURS! Builder WILLIAM PUGH discusses building prehistoric creatures, a LEGO Jurassic World by DIEGO MAXIMINO PRIETO ALVAREZ, and dino bones by MATT SAILORS! Plus: Minifigure Customization by JARED K. BURKS, stepby-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, DIY Fan Art by BrickNerd TOMMY WILLIAMSON, MINDSTORMS robotics lessons, and more!

LEGO COOL CARS AND HOT RODS! LEGO car builders STEPHAN SANDER, JORDANIAN FIRAS ABU-JABER, and ANDREA LATTANZIO! Plus: Minifigure Customization by JARED K. BURKS, AFOLs by cartoonist GREG HYLAND, step-bystep “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd Pop Art by TOMMY WILLIAMSON, MINDSTORMS robotics lessons by DAMIEN KEE, and more!

STAR WARS! Amazing custom ships by ERIC DRUON, incredible galactic layouts by builder AC PIN, a look at the many droid creations built by LEGO fans—truly, the LEGO Force has awakened! Plus JARED K. BURKS on minifigure customizing, stepby-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art, MINDSTORMS robotics lessons by DAMIEN KEE, and more!

MICROSCALE BUILDING! With JUSTIN McMILLAN’s micro house and other buildings, a look at the MICROSCALE Standard by TwinLUG, and featuring some of the best microscopic LEGO work from around the world, plus JARED K. BURKS’ minifigure customizing, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art, MINDSTORMS robotics lessons by DAMIEN KEE, and more!

HISTORY IN LEGO BRICKS! LEGO pro RYAN McNAUGHT on his LEGO Pompeii and other projects, military builder DAN SISKIND on his BrickMania creations, and LASSE VESTERGARD about his historical building, JARED K. BURKS on minifigure customizing, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art, MINDSTORMS robotics lessons by DAMIEN KEE, and more!

(84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $4.95

BRICKJOURNAL #34

BRICKJOURNAL #33

BRICKJOURNAL #32

BRICKJOURNAL #31

BRICKJOURNAL #30

TOMMY WILLIAMSON on the making of his YouTube sensation BATMAN VS SUPERMAN, BRANDON GRIFFITH’S COMICBRICKS PROJECT recreates iconic comic book covers out of LEGO, JARED BURKS and his custom Agents of SHIELD minifigs, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art, MINDSTORMS robotics lessons by DAMIEN KEE, and more!

LEGO ROBOTS! A talk with MINDSTORMS EV3 builders MARC-ANDRE BAZERGUI and ANDY MILLUZZI, designer LEE MAGPILI, CHRIS GIDDENS with his amazing robot sculptures, plus Minifigure Customization by JARED BURKS, stepby-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art by TOMMY WILLIAMSON, other looks at MINDSTORMS building, and more!

LEGO ARTISTRY with builder/photographer CHRIS McVEIGH; mosaic builders BRIAN KORTE, DAVE WARE and DAVE SHADDIX; and sculptors SEAN KENNEY (about his nature models) and ED DIMENT (about a full-size bus stop built with LEGO bricks)! Plus Minifigure Customization by JARED K. BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, MINDSTORMS building, and more!

Building LEGO bricks WITH character, with IAIN HEATH and TOMMY WILLIAMSON, Manga-inspired creations of MIKE DUNG, sculptures by Taiwanese Brick Artist YO YO CHEN, Minifigure Customization by JARED BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art by TOMMY WILLIAMSON, MINDSTORMS building, and more!

LEGO ARCHITECTURE with JONATHAN LOPES, a microscale model of Copenhagen by ULRIK HANSEN, and a look at the LEGO MUSEUM being constructed in Denmark! Plus Minifigure Customization by JARED BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art by TOMMY WILLIAMSON, MINDSTORMS building with DAMIEN KEE, and more!

(84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $4.95

BRICKJOURNAL #29

BRICKJOURNAL #28

BRICKJOURNAL #27

BRICKJOURNAL #26

BRICKJOURNAL #25

Technic hot rod builder PAUL BORATKO and editor JOE MENO diagram instructions on adding functions to your models, shop-talk with LEGO Technic designers, and more surprises to keep your creations moving at top speed! Plus Minifigure Customization by JARED BURKS, stepby-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art by TOMMY WILLIAMSON, and more!

Learn what went into the making of The LEGO Movie and other brickfilms with moviemaker DAVID PAGANO, chat with brickfilmers The Brotherhood Workshop, sit in on a talk with the makers of LEGO: A Brickumentary, a look at MINDSTORMS building, minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, AFOLs by GREG HYLAND, & more!

GUY HIMBER takes you to the IRON BUILDER CONTEST, which showcases the top LEGO® builders in the world! Cover by LEGO magazine and comic artist PAUL LEE, amazing custom models by LINO MARTINS, TYLER CLITES, BRUCE LOWELL, COLE BLAQ and others, minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, AFOLs by GREG HYLAND, & more!

CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL with builders SEAN and STEPHANIE MAYO (known online as Siercon and Coral), other custom animal models from BrickJournal editor JOE MENO, LEGO DINOSAURS with WILL PUGH, plus more minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, AFOLs by cartoonist GREG HYLAND, step-bystep “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, and more!

MEDIEVAL CASTLE BUILDING! Top LEGO® Castle builders present their creations, including BOB CARNEY’s amazingly detailed model of Neuschwanstein Castle, plus others, along with articles on building and detailing castles of your own! Also: JARED BURKS on minifigure customization, AFOLs by cartoonist GREG HYLAND, stepby-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, and more!

(84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $4.95

BRICKJOURNAL #24

BRICKJOURNAL #23

BRICKJOURNAL #22

BRICKJOURNAL #21

BRICKJOURNAL #20

LEGO TRAINS! Builder CALE LEIPHART shows how to get started building trains and train layouts, with instructions on building microscale trains by editor JOE MENO, building layouts with the members of the Pennsylvania LEGO Users Group (PennLUG), fan-built LEGO monorails minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, microscale building by CHRISTOPHER DECK, “You Can Build It”, and more!

STAR WARS issue, with custom creations from a long time ago and far, far away! JACOB CARPENTER’s Imperial Star Destroyer, MARK KELSO’s Invisible Hand, interview with SIMON MACDONALD about building Star Wars costume props with LEGO elements, history of the LEGO X-Wing, plus our regular features on minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, “You Can Build It” instructions, and more!

LEGO PLANE BUILDING! Top builder RALPH SAVELSBERG takes off with his custom LEGO fighter models, there’s a squadron of articles on Sky-Fi planes by FRADEL GONZALES and COLE MARTIN, find instructions to build a Sky-Fi plane, plus our regular feature on minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, AFOLs by GREG HYLAND, other step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions, and more!

LEGO CAR BUILDING! Guest editors LINO MARTINS and NATHAN PROUDLOVE of LUGNuts share secrets behind their LEGO car creations, and present TECHNIC SUPERCAR MODELS by PAUL BORATKO III and other top builders! Plus custom instructions by TIM GOULD and CHRISTOPHER DECK, minifigure customization by JARED BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” section, and more!

LEGO SUPERHEROES! Behind-the-scenes of the DC and Marvel Comics sets, plus a feature on GREG HYLAND, the artist of the superhero comic books in each box! Also, other superhero work by ALEX SCHRANZ and our cover artist OLIVIER CURTO. Plus, JARED K. BURKS’ regular column on minifigure customization, building tips, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions, and more!

(84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $4.95

BRICKJOURNAL #19

BRICKJOURNAL #18

BRICKJOURNAL #17

BRICKJOURNAL #15

BRICKJOURNAL #13

LEGO EVENTS ISSUE covering our own BRICKMAGIC FESTIVAL, BRICKWORLD, BRICKFAIR, BRICKCON, plus other events outside the US. There’s full event details, plus interviews with the winners of the BRICKMAGIC CHALLENGE competition, complete with instructions to build award winning models. Also JARED K. BURKS’ regular column on minifigure customizing, building tips, and more!

Go to Japan with articles on two JAPANESE LEGO FAN EVENTS, plus take a look at JAPAN’S SACRED LEGO LAND, Nasu Highland Park—the site of the BrickFan events and a pilgrimage site for many Japanese LEGO fans. Also, a feature on JAPAN’S TV CHAMPIONSHIP OF LEGO, a look at the CLICKBRICK LEGO SHOPS in Japan, plus how to get into TECHNIC BUILDING, LEGO EDUCATION, and more!

LEGO SPACE WAR issue! A STARFIGHTER BUILDING LESSON by Peter Reid, WHY SPACE MARINES ARE SO POPULAR by Mark Stafford, a trip behind the scenes of LEGO’S NEW ALIEN CONQUEST SETS that hit store shelves earlier this year, plus JARED K. BURKS’ column on MINIFIGURE CUSTOMIZATION, building tips, event reports, our step-by-step “YOU CAN BUILD IT” INSTRUCTIONS, and more!

Looks at the LEGO MECHA genre of building, especially in Japan! Feature editor NATHAN BRYAN spotlights mecha builders such as SAITO YOSHIKAZU, TAKAYUKI TORII, SUKYU and others! Also, a talk with BRIAN COOPER and MARK NEUMANN about their mecha creations, mecha building instructions by SAITO YOSHIKAZU, our regular columns on minifigure customization, building, event reports, and more!

EVENT ISSUE with reports from the BRICKMAGIC fan festival (organized by BrickJournal Magazine), BRICKWORLD (one of the oldest US LEGO fan events), and others! Plus: spotlight on BIONICLE Builder NORBERT LAGUBUEN, our regular column on minifigure customization, stepby-step “You Can Build It” instructions, spotlights on builders and their work, and more!

(84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $4.95

TwoMorrows. BRICKJOURNAL #12

BRICKJOURNAL #11

BRICKJOURNAL #10

BRICKJOURNAL #9

A look at back-to-school sculptures by NATHAN SAWAYA, LEGO builder MARCOS BESSA’s creations, ANGUS MACLANE’s CubeDudes, a Nepali Diorama by JORDAN SCHWARTZ, instructions to build a school bus, MINIFIG CUSTOMIZATION by JARED K. BURKS, how a POWER MINERS model became one for ATLANTIS, building standards, and much more!

“Racers” theme issue, with building tips on race cars by the ARVO BROTHERS, interview with LEGO RACERS designer ANDREW WOODMAN, LEGO FORMULA ONE RACING, TECHNIC SPORTS CAR building, event reports, MINIFIGURE CUSTOMIZATION by JARED K. BURKS, MICRO BUILDING, builder spotlights, LEGO HISTORY, and more!

BrickJournal goes undersea with looks at the creation of LEGO’s new ATLANTIS SETS, plus a spotlight on a fan-created underwater theme, THE SEA MONKEYS, with builder FELIX GRECO! Also, a report on the LEGO WORLD convention in the Netherlands, BUILDER SPOTLIGHTS, INSTRUCTIONS and ways to CUSTOMIZE MINIFIGURES, LEGO HISTORY, and more!

BrickJournal looks at LEGO® DISNEY SETS, with features on the Disney LEGO sets of the past (MICKEY and MINNIE) and present (TOY STORY and PRINCE OF PERSIA)! We also present Disney models built by LEGO fans, and a look at the newest Master Build model at WALT DISNEY WORLD, plus articles and instructions on building and customization, and more!

(84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $4.95

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Last Word So ends the second Steampunk issue of BrickJournal! I’m tired (deadlines will do that to you), but also very happy with all the articles that made it into this issue. As always, each issue is a major effort on the part of all the writers and photographers, and also a continuing source of inspiration for me when I put everything together. New prescription.

That’s what I love the most about what I do. Every issue has something that teaches me or inspires me to build. Steampunk is a theme that I am not very familiar with, so Guy Himber’s help in finding outstanding Steampunk builders was invaluable. Many thanks, Guy! The other thing I like about the job is that it’s a lot of fun... and not entirely serious. And that’s good. Life is too serious to take seriously. See you next issue, where we go into sculpting! That Joe Meno Guy

Of monsters and Muppets!

AFOLs Classics

by Greg Hyland

BOOKS FROM TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING

MONSTER MASH

COMIC BOOK FEVER

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MARK VOGER’s time-trip back to 1957-1972, to explore the CREEPY, KOOKY MONSTER CRAZE, when monsters stomped into America’s mainstream!

GEORGE KHOURY presents a “love letter” to the comics of 1976-1986, covering all that era’s top artists, coolest stories, and even the best ads!

A psychedelic look at when Flower Power bloomed in Pop Culture. Revisits ‘60s era’s ROCK FESTIVALS, TV, MOVIES, ART, COMICS & CARTOONS!

MICHAEL EURY looks at comics’ CAMP AGE, when

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spies liked their wars cold and their women warm, and TV’s Batman shook a mean cape!

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COMICS MAGAZINES FROM TWOMORROWS

BACK ISSUE

ALTER EGO

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BACK ISSUE celebrates comic books of the 1970s, 1980s, and today through a variety of recurring (and rotating) departments, including Pro2Pro interviews (between two top creators), “Greatest Stories Never Told”, retrospective articles, and more. Edited by MICHAEL EURY.

ALTER EGO, the greatest ‘zine of the ‘60s, is all-new, focusing on Golden and Silver Age comics and creators with articles, interviews and unseen art. Each issue includes an FCA (Fawcett Collectors of America) section, Mr. Monster & more. Edited by ROY THOMAS.

COMIC BOOK CREATOR is the new voice of the comics medium, devoted to the work and careers of the men and women who draw, write, edit, and publish comics, focusing always on the artists and not the artifacts, the creators and not the characters. Edited by JON B. COOKE.

DRAW! is the professional “How-To” magazine on cartooning and animation. Each issue features in-depth interviews and stepby-step demonstrations from top comics professionals. Most issues contain nudity for figure-drawing instruction; Mature Readers Only. Edited by MIKE MANLEY.

JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR celebrates the life and career of the “King” of comics through interviews with Kirby and his contemporaries, feature articles, and rare & unseen Kirby artwork. Now full-color, the magazine showcases Kirby’s art even more dynamically. Edited by JOHN MORROW.

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orrows Inc.

Remember when Saturday morning television was our domain, and ours alone? When tattoos came from bubble gum packs, Slurpees came in superhero cups, and TV heroes taught us to be nice to each other? Those were the happy days of the Sixties, Seventies, and Eighties—our childhood—and that is the era of TwoMorrows’ newest magazine, covering

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NEW! He Made Us Believe A Man Can Fly! EXCLUSIVE Interview with

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Aquaman in Animation

Pillsbury’s Funny Face Collectibles

and Seventies! ic Fanzines of the Sixties Fanboys’ Fantast the Oddball World of Scott Shaw! • Andy Mangels • Ernest Farino • and Featuring Martin Pasko

#3: SUPERMAN: THE MOVIE Director RICHARD DONNER interview, IRWIN ALLEN’s sci-fi universe, Saturday morning’s undersea adventures of AQUAMAN, ’60s and ’70s horror/sci-fi zines, Spider-Man and Hulk toilet paper, RetroTravel to METROPOLIS, IL’s Superman Celebration, SEA-MONKEYS®, FUNNY FACE beverages & collectibles, a fortress of Superman and Batman memorabilia, and more! SHIPS DECEMBER 2018! Phone: 919-449-0344 E-mail: store@twomorrows.com Web: www.twomorrows.com

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RETROFAN #1 cover-features an all-new interview with TV’s Incredible Hulk, LOU FERRIGNO, and introduces a quartet of columns by our regular celebrity columnists: MARTIN PASKO’s Pesky Perspective (this issue: The Phantom in Hollywood), ANDY MANGELS’ Retro Saturday Mornings (Filmation’s Star Trek cartoon), ERNEST FARINO’s Retro Fantasmagoria (How I Met the Wolf Man—Lon Chaney, Jr.), and The Oddball World of SCOTT SHAW (the goofy comic book Zody the Mod Rob). Also: Mego’s rare Elastic Hulk toy; RetroTravel to Mount Airy, NC, the real-life Mayberry; an interview with BETTY LYNN, “Thelma Lou” of The Andy Griffith Show; the scarcity of Andy Griffith Show collectibles; a trip inside TOM STEWART’s eclectic House of Collectibles; RetroFan’s Too Much TV Quiz; and a RetroFad shout-out to Mr. Microphone. Edited by Back Issue magazine’s MICHAEL EURY!

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