The Art of the Brick at the ArtScience Museum at the Marina Bay Sands, Singapore

It is fun to see works of art. And the exhibit entitled The Art of the Brick at the ArtScience Museum at the Marina Bay Sands is no exception. And arguably, this should be even more fun, since the medium used is - a toy - Lego (R) bricks!


Yellow man breaking out is a wonderful lifelike recreation of a well-defined male figure breaking open his shell, revealing and even spilling what's inside him- more yellow bricks! In another medium, this could be a scary and violent expression. But in this exhibit, this is captivating, engaging, creative and fun!


New York-based artist Nathan Sawaya says he is just having fun as he builds his creations, but this has developed into something exceptional such that CNN.com has named this as one of the Top 10 'Global Must-See Exhibits (June 12, 2011).
If you are in Singapore anytime until April 14, 2013, add this to your list of top things to do or top sites to visit. Spend two hours at the Art Science Museum, then the rest of the afternoon at the Marina Bay Sands, another must-go destination.


I find it fascinating that people love to create art, and people can appreciate art. As people do these, they are reflecting God's image. God created the heavens and the Earth (Genesis 1:1). He created beautiful and colorful birds and fishes (Genesis 1:20-21) and animals (Genesis 1:24). Some, too colorful that I imagine a schoolteacher who doesn't know wildlife telling a young child he colored that bird or that fish or that frog wrongly or too playfully, when the kid is accurately depicting God's colorful creatures!


Amazon Parrots Photograph - Amazon Parrots Fine Art Print - Dani Stites


Bluebarred Parrotfish - Scarus Ghobban. Photo by: Ken Knezick


Harlequin Poison Dart Frog Photograph - Harlequin Poison Dart Frog Fine Art Print - Thomas Marent

But when God created man, He created him differently. God created man in His image (Genesis 1:26-27), to be like Him (1John 3:2). So when man creates art (as well as products, technology, inventions), he is exercising a God-given ability that mirrors God's creative power. When God looked at His creation He saw that it was good (Genesis 1:12, 18, 21, 25). And when people look at works of art and see that they are good, people are again expressing a God-given ability to appreciate, affirming the words In Genesis chapter 1.


Grey man at a loss at losing his hands. What would you do without your hands, your ability to create? Artist Nathan Sawaya asks this question through this emotion-evoking piece.

Artists are not limited to paints and brushes, charcoal and canvas, marble or stone, but use common everyday materials as well. Yet the use of toy Lego (R) bricks, those ubiquitous (for parents with young kids!), brightly-colored rectangular blocks with tightly squared edges, to reproduce the organic and flowing contours of chiseled bodies, I find to be truly imaginative. The use of the tiny bricks is symbolic of how God created man from the dust of the ground and breathed life into it (Genesis 2:7).


This is blue man sitting on a chair, pausing to rest and think. It was interesting to see person after person, child and adult, taking the chair beside blue man and try to mimic his exact pose.


Including my wife! Pretty good copy of the pose :)




Here's an interesting play on a scene where art is created. The"painting" is colored, while the real life objects are black and white. Everything is made of bricks, including the fruits, the painting, the tables, and even the easel.

Here are more interesting blends of angular and geometric shapes fused with flowing body sculptures.








There are also portraits made of bricks.


Here's the "painting" I liked best, named Courtney White. Artist Nathan said that some people would stare at this work and not see the face!

There is also an interactive portion where you can take your photo and convert it to a " painting" made of bricks.


Here's my wife taking a photo of her brick image.








And here is my wife and I taking a photo, and the resulting brick image. The picture may look course and unappealing, but it becomes surprisingly realistic when you step back and the "pixel" size becomes smaller.

Well, that's an afternoon at The Art of the Brick. Time well spent, especially with the family.
Now here's another treat - try a cup of hot chocolate at Au Chocolat, a newly opened French-inspired restaurant and dessert place inside The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands, on the top floor above the skating rink, near the ArtScience Museum. Great for chocolate lovers. Of course, a Coke Light is another splendid choice after that walk through the museum.

Cheers!



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Location:Singapore

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