BRICKSPO, the annual mini-building-block extravaganza of all things Lego, returned to the Western Development Museum in Moose Jaw from July 27 to 28 to showcase some creative minds from across western Canada.
During BRICKSPO, the Moose Jaw Express spoke with a few of the creators to learn more about the inspiration behind their builds.
Christina Wilkinson
Christina Wilkinson lives in Medicine Hat, Alta., and was the creator of “Spider Lady,” a roughly five-foot tall Lego figure as well as a few smaller creations, “Red and Black Flowers” and a mosaic made entirely out of Lego spiders.
Her inspiration to create Spider Lady came from an interest in Lego minifigures, of which Spider Lady was her favourite. With the idea in mind, Wilkinson set out to create something she’s never tackled before for BRICKSPO ’24.
“I wanted to have something that you could take your photo in front of, so that’s why I wanted to do a giant mosaic,” she explained.
The project took two weeks to complete and involved as much of her spare time as she had available.
“The first week I did it on baseplates and I made the pattern,” she said. “Then I decided I wanted her standing alone, so I had to make the bottom part and then transfer the pattern onto the base.”
Wilkinson, who uses the handle “Spooky Brick Lady” in Lego communities, is looking to return for her seventh year in 2025.
Shawn and Matthew Cooley
Sean and Matthew Cooley are brothers who aren’t new to BRICKSPO. After being featured in a collectible Star Wars book for their eight- by 18-foot “Battle of Scariff” a couple years back, they’ve set out to impress with their latest creation, “Star Wars Battlefront — Sullust: Walker Assault” for Sean’s fourth and Matt’s third BRICKSPO event.
Made from between 100,000 and 150,000 individual Lego bricks, “Sullust: Walker Assault” took around seven months from start to finish.
“I’m going to be moving soon from Winnipeg to Calgary,” Sean said. “And then my brother, he works two weeks on and two weeks off at a time, (so)… we’re not always around to build.”
Their inspiration came from Sean’s favourite map in the game “Star Wars: Battlefront.”
“It was my favourite map to play in the video game,” he said. “I thought it was a really unique looking planet.”
Chris Abrams
Chris Abrams is from Morden, Man., and his Lego creation was called the “Great Ball Contraption” or, more colloquially, the “Quad Wheel.”
The moving wheels on Abrams’ contraption are powered by a 12-volt Lego train controller, and each wheel has its own XL motor and operates independently. Each wheel also contains a separate transmission to slow down the drive motor as required.
When operational, the device collects small orange Lego basketballs and lifts them one by one to the top and then drops them down a long slide to start all over again.
“The first design (had) three wheels, and it took about nine months on and off (to complete),” he explained. “This winter I added a fourth wheel, and that added about two weeks (to the project’s total).”
Much of his time was spent making the device mobile, and the result is an ability to assemble the creation in three hours — if he doesn’t make any mistakes — and the whole thing fits nicely inside six plastic totes for transport.
Abrams’ inspiration comes from his career in trucking. “As I’ve said before, trucking is hard on the back but easy on the mind,” he said in good humour. “This gives me something mindful to do; it’s a challenge.”
The “Quad Wheel” has been to two past BRICKSPO events, six similar events in Manitoba, and two in Chicago. Last year, he said, it was a runner up for the show in Illinois.
“A lot of kids have trouble with math or science, and I love when they come here because I get to explain to them all the math and science that goes into this (Lego creation),” he said. “Then they’re excited; it’s a pretty cool STEM tool.”
To learn more about the Saskatchewan Lego Users Group who organizes BRICKSPO each summer, visit SaskLug.org.
