Overview
Lego has come a long way since I was a kid. For me, the brightly coloured plastic bricks didn't transcend their basic wall-building function much more than serving as useful things to throw at the cat when I wanted her to get off the bed. Over the years though, they've grown and expanded to include intricate Harry Potter, Star Wars and Ninja sets, as well as other more grown-up ranges for construction geeks everywhere.
Now, as part of Lego's crazy-popular Architecture Series, in which there are already eleven projects, the Danish company is kicking off the month of March by launching their twelfth project, The Sydney Opera House. The series already features Ludwig Mies van der Rohe's iconic Farnsworth House and Frank Lloyd Wright's Guggenheim Museum, as well as Seattle's Space Needle and the Empire State Building, so the national landmark is in very distinguished company.
Conceived and built by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, the Opera House opened in 1973 after winning a design competition sixteen years earlier in 1957. Not only is the Sydney Opera House the city's most distinctive landmark, but it's also one of the most innovative and applauded examples of modern architecture. Upon being awarded the Pritzker Prize in 2003, judges said "It is one of the great iconic buildings of the 20th century, an image of great beauty that has become known throughout the world – a symbol for not only a city, but a whole country and continent."
The 270-piece model will be on sale this month, containing a step-by-step instruction guide for budding architectects, designers and engineers, as well as a full archival history and message on the Reconciliation Action Plan completed in consultation with Sydney Opera House. You can pick it up online from the Lego Store or buy locally at the Sydney Opera House shop.
[Via Sydney Opera House]