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"This is what hope is. It isn't pretending that nothing will go wrong if only we try hard enough. It's looking squarely at all the obstacles in the way, knowing the limits of our own power, and the possibility of failure, and moving ahead anyway. This is how we must proceed. With hope." ―Stellan Gios
• Parts: 36,800+ (~1,130 unique)
• 📐 Scale: 1:650
• 📏 Dimensions: 32in x 51in (80cm x 130cm)
• 📚 Research, Design + Build Time: 4 months
• Photography: James Vitullo 📷
• ©️ MMXXIV - Rocco Buttliere, LLC
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During a brief stint in Washington D.C. in 2023, I spent the better part of a summer evening exploring the grounds of Capitol Hill. Few landscapes invite as much inquiry along winding paths paired with plenty of moments for quiet introspection on marble benches; all in picturesque view of the Capitol dome. These on-site experiences are exactly the form of anecdotal justification I seek when considering whether to recreate such monumental places in the first place.
In tackling any work of such storied precedence as the US Capitol, I always seek to expand the conversation beyond existing works in the medium of plastic bricks. While the consistent 1:650 scale among my works has always ensured some level of originality, it is no guarantee of further insight that cannot already be gleaned from existing works by other artists. With this in mind, I set out to capture the full 100-acre site currently maintained by The Architect of the Capitol. What's more, the diorama depicts a particular time of year - specifically late March to early April - as illustrated by the iconic presence of hundreds of cherry blossoms rendered in two shades of light pink.
The diorama starts downhill at the trapezoidal Capitol Reflecting Pool, with the Grant Memorial taking pride of place along its eastern edge and the US Botanic Garden across the street to the south. The diorama expands from there, capturing the radiating pathways meandering uphill, as designed by Frederick Law Olmsted within the parcels laid out in the city plan by Pierre Charles L'Enfant. The piece culminates with the widely imitated US Capitol Building, perched atop a plinth projecting from the Capitol Visitor Center on the opposite side.
Topping everything off is a custom-made representation of the Statue of Freedom (as designed by Thomas Crawford), steadfastly overlooking the National Mall from atop the dome. The statue was designed in collaboration with BigKidBrix and was sized comparably to the minifigure statuette / trophy element.
The piece was designed over the course of about two months: first in December 2023 through January 2024, paused during the build-out of SPQR - Phase II, then resumed between March and April. The build-out lasted from July through August and was completed by September. The piece will soon be added to my personal gallery of works, now available for touring exhibitions.
#Artist #SupportArtists #FineArt #SmallBusiness #SmallBusinessOwner #ChicagoArtist #LEGO #LEGOArchitecture #LEGOArt #LEGOArtist #InstaLEGO #GoBricks #USCapitol #USCapitolBuilding #CapitolHill #WashingtonDC #ArchitectOfTheCapitol #America #USA #Diorama #AmericanHistory
What was only supposed to be a series of 3 models, spun into a total of 6. This is my 4th build in my "Moments of Melancholy" series. While all the others had some sort of direct inspiration, whether a song or a piece of artwork, this one was just off the dome.
Only uses the colors white, light bley, dark bley, black, red, dark red, and coral. Model started in August 2023, finished in May 2024, and photographed in March of 2025. The top petals use ~10 sets of the dragon wings from set 70653 Firstbourne (Part # 38765 on Bricklink).
True Contrite ⚫
Disguise your memory with pictures on the walls
Replace my every flaw, the ones you never even saw
We dream in color, but see in black and white
Between the covers, we sleep on beds of lies
Someday your true contrite will find you
The third MOC in my mixel-joint-based miniland plus series with heavy emphasis on color and emotion. It was supposed to be the last, but I think I may have 3 more in the works... This one only uses the following colors: Bright Light Yellow, Yellow, Bright Light Orange, Orange, Dark Orange, Brown, Dark Brown, and Black. Exceptions are Light and Dark Bley for the mixel joints. Completed in May 2023.
Lyrics by Knuckle Puck from the song "True Contrite".
via Instagram ift.tt/1pi15Ed With the service truck going up on the display shelf today, something had to come down to make room for it. Luckily both of these will make room for the truck + the bulldozer that's up next. #organization #tinyapartment #lego #legos #legoaddict #legoaddicted #legoaddiction #bricknetwork #toygroup_alliance #toycrewbuddies #toycrewbuddiesusa #toycrewbuddieslego #legostagram #instalego #afol #afolclub #legoclub #toyslagram_lego #toys_lego #legomania #legography #legophoto #legocity
Growing On You 🌳
I am a blade in a lawn that's new
Covered in dew
Waiting on you
I need no shade
I'm tried and true
But I'm lonely like you
I'm growing on you
Submitted to the LEGO Ideas contest "Exhibit Your Creativity In The Lego House!" under the "All Seasons" category under the name "A Spring Awakening": The slumbering earth awoke from its winter's rest, and a symphony of life began to play. The butterflies come out to find a friend. Model has a footprint of 32 x 36 studs and is approximately 52 stacked bricks tall.
This is the second MOC in my mixel-joint-based miniland plus series with heavy emphasis on color and emotion. This is the green one :)
The build started in mid-May with the character when making the other miniland plus characters. I knew I wanted to make something with classical architecture and use the net-weaving technique. I did a quick sketch a few weeks ago and the rest of the MOC flowed from there. A portion of the flowers/plants are recycled sub-assemblies from Order of the Falcon: Monastery by the Eastern Sea.
I reeeeeaally wanted to display this at Brickworld 2023 to show alongside Die In Your Arms and True Contrite, but it sadly just didn't get done in time #YONHO. A prototype version was displayed at Bricks in the Six 2023.
Lyrics by The Story So Far from their song "Growing on You".
Four weeks late to talking about it, but that's a dozen Brickworlds in the bag. Now being a cemented yearly ritual, it's hard to find new words to describe how awesome and meaningful each year's is. So, needless to say: it was good . This year included running the film festival, a workshop, giving two presentations, leading a panel, participating in another, leading Super Smash Collab, being in Nolan collab, a concert, and some Brickworld Master duties. It was a lot but thank you to everyone who makes these 5 days the highlight of my year every time.
By far, the true highlight was getting to see Dan Church win Brickworld Master and passing the crown off. It was so awesome to see him build like a fiend in the last 12 months and I am so happy and proud of him and all his accomplishments.
I'm now taking an indefinite sabbatical from LEGO. No idea when I'll be making new MOCs again. I'm burnt out after intently pursuing it non-stop for the last 4 years. I'll still be posting, but no new post-Brickworld building. See you on the other side 👋
More photos and info on my IG: www.instagram.com/p/C9KuqJWhf2G/?img_index=1