Lego lovers unite: Hundreds enjoy creating at Brick Fest Live — PHOTOS
A shared love of tiny pieces of colorful plastic drew hundreds to the two-day Brick Fest Live 2023 in downtown Las Vegas.
Lego aficionados of all ages had much to take in at the fest, held Saturday and Sunday at the World Market Center. Among the bright sights were Lego sculptures including a giant Lego sculpture of Woody from the movie “Toy Story;” a replica of the Las Vegas Strip, a portrait of Abraham Lincoln, interactive murals and wall art, Lego car races and a kid favorite, a giant pit full of multicolored Legos.
For some , the shared pandemic work closures came with a silver lining of more time to focus on their hobby of building Lego projects.
“It’s truly a hobby for me and I love doing it,” said builder Lee Goldman, who built various Star Wars air ships out of Legos that were on display. “I just love how with Lego you can emulate and represent things that you love and approach it in so many different ways.”
Members of LUGVegas, which stands for LEGO® Users Group of Southern Nevada, displayed their Lego brick-building prowess at the event.
LUGVegas member Scott Thomas said that the crowd is what makes these kinds of events fun for him.
“It’s great to interact with the crowd and be asked questions like ‘How long did it take to build this?’ or ‘Where did the idea come from?’” he said.
Thomas has his own reasons for enjoying and building projects with the colorful bricks.
“I just love Legos,” he said. “It helps ease my mind and just throw myself into something that I can get lost in.”
Nestor Garcia from Lego Masters Season 1 also took part in the event, signing autographs and taking pictures with attendees. Garcia said Lego means a lot to him. He said it unites his family — his son, Manny, was on the show with him — and he noted that Lego also brings people together — a reference to the crowd at Sunday’s event.
“It’s part of being an artist,” Garcia added. “It’s a wonderful feeling to start with a blank slate and watch as something you created comes to life.”
Lego lovers of all ages flocked to the event, which also proved to be a bonding experience for some parents and their kids.
“I love Legos,” Branden Timmermann blurted out loudly before his mom could answer a reporter’s question about why they came to the event.
Then it was Sonya Timmermann’s turn to talk about why she and her son came to the fest.
“I just wanted to do something special for him,” she said. “He just loves playing with Legos so I thought this would be a great summer event for him while he’s out of school.”
Many in attendance did not leave empty-handed as plenty of souvenirs were available for purchase, including commemorative shirts, pins, keychains, wristbands, and Lego sets and mini figures from the official Lego store.
Contact Kiara Adams at kadams@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-0399. Follow @kiadams101 on Twitter.
