Giant Lego sculpture exhibit, “The Art of the Brick,” opens in Paris

PARIS – American artist Nathan Sawaya’s “The Art of the Brick” takes a children’s toy and turns it into high art.

The show, which opens Thursday in Paris, contains some 100 sculptures composed of more than 1 million Lego bricks.

Sawaya’s most famous work, “Yellow,” a male bust opening his own chest, is featured alongside a 6 metre (20-foot) -long skeleton of a Tyrannosaurus Rex, as well as a replica of the Venus de Milo statue — the original of which is on display in the nearby Louvre Museum.

A former lawyer, Sawaya quit his job in a New York law firm to follow his Lego art passion, and first introduced Lego sculptures to the art world in 2007. He’s since staged exhibitions in North America, Asia, Australia and Europe.

“The great thing about Lego bricks is it’s a universal toy… In Africa, I met some folks who’d never played with Lego and never even heard of it. And yet they immediately got it when I brought out a few bricks. And that’s the great thing about using the medium: it makes the art very accessible,” said Sawaya.

“The Art of the Brick” runs at Paris Expo-Porte de Versailles until August 30.