Final Days for ‘The Art of the Brick’: LEGO masterpieces conclude at the Franklin Institute this Sunday

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Time is running out for LEGO enthusiasts as “The Art of the Brick” exhibition enters its final days at the Franklin Institute. The acclaimed collection of over 100 works of art made of LEGO bricks will end its time at the museum this Sunday, Nov. 17, after a nine-month run as part of the Institute’s 200th anniversary celebrations.

Known as “the world’s largest display of LEGO art,” the exhibit is the work of former New York attorney Nathan Sawaya. Originally from Oregon, Sawaya moved to New York to pursue a career in law, but his life took a different direction.

“When I was a lawyer, I quickly came to realize I was more comfortable sitting on the floor creating sculptures than I was sitting in a boardroom,” says one of the placards at the exhibit, quoting Sawaya. He left his law career in 2004 and became a LEGO artist.

“Art of the Brick” began in 2007 as a traveling exhibit featuring sculptures and art pieces made by Sawaya. According to the exhibit’s website, the collection “features original pieces as well as re-imagined versions of the world’s most famous art masterpieces like Van Gogh’s ‘Starry Night’ and Da Vinci’s ‘Mona Lisa’ as well as a gallery showcasing an innovative, multimedia collection of LEGO brick infused photography.”

As patrons walk through the exhibition, they will see different themed sections, such as “The Human Condition,” showcasing LEGO art around emotions. Another section features art from the ancient world, such as the statue of David.

Works of animals are featured heavily throughout, with a section new to Philly known as “PERNiCiEM: The Endangered Species Connection.” The works of art are a collaboration between Sawaya and photographer Dean West.

“The collection features 13 large-scale sculptures — created from LEGO bricks — of endangered animals, including the humpback whale, polar bear, and lowland gorilla, each presented with a cinematic image of their natural habitat, shot on location in multiple remote global regions,” according to the museum.

Among the collection of art are also Philly-themed pieces like a life-sized Liberty Bell, complete with a crack filled in with rainbow bricks, and a statue of Benjamin Franklin.

This is the exhibition’s second run in the city, having been at the Franklin Institute once before in 2015. With the museum celebrating its 200th anniversary this year, the museum decided to bring the popular exhibition back.

“As we looked at what would be a great traveling exhibit for our visitors, we thought of nothing better than ‘Art of the Brick’ as we celebrate our 200th anniversary,” said Larry Dubinski, president and CEO of the Franklin Institute. “Nathan Sawaya, the artist who in his first rendition of this exhibition here, was fortunate to do a liberty bell for us,” he said.

At the end of an exhibit patrons enter a large 9,000-square-foot brick play space where they can use thousands of LEGO bricks available “to build their imaginative creations,” according to the Institute.

“We want creativity to come out. There’s this great interest in LEGO, there’s this great interest in engineering, and this is an exhibit for all ages and this is what the Franklin Institute does so well,” said Dubinski.

Patrons can buy tickets for the exhibition on the Franklin’s Institute’s website or at the museum. A reduced price ticket is available for Friday and Saturday evenings to come between 5 and 8 p.m. The last day to see the exhibit is this Sunday, Nov. 17.

As the exhibit closes out, the museum will continue on with its 200-year celebrations, opening two new exhibit’s later this month: Body Odyssey, an exhibition around the heart, and the Hamilton Collections gallery, a new space that will be a “magnificent showcase of the museum’s collections, curated for public view on a scale never before seen in its 200-year history,” according to the museum’s website.

“It’s reminiscent of what’s to come,” said Dubinski. “Engaging, entertaining and fun exhibitions here at the Franklin Institute continue, but we’re taking them up a notch.”