All About The Art of the Brick

The first question my daughter asked on the way to the exhibition was, "Who made all the sculptures?" Luckily, we got to learn all about the artist in the very first room! He's a contemporary artist named Nathan Sawaya, and he's the first to use LEGO bricks as a medium.

Sawaya's re-imaginings of real works of art are truly impressive. 

The exhibition is set up like an art museum, with guests walking from room to room at their own pace. Each room contains groupings of similarly themed art. Some of the sculptures were re-imaginings of real works of art, like Van Gogh's Starry Night, Da Vinci's Mona Lisa, Munch's The Scream, and Michelangelo's David. It was absolutely incredible how close Sawaya was able to get to the original works. My daughter even noted that LEGO Mona Lisa's eyes appeared to follow her just like the real Mona Lisa's eyes do!

But Sawaya's original works are also really breathtaking. Many of them represent big emotions, like hope, despair, and feeling trapped. It sparked some interesting discussions with my daughter: We'd read the description of a piece and then talk about how the piece showcased that emotion or idea.

Little ones will ooh and aah over the animal sculptures.

My daughter's favorite room was the one with all the giant animal sculptures! A whale, a shark, and a dolphin all hung from the ceiling. There was also a rhino, a cheetah, a tiger, elephants, a polar bear and cub, a gorilla, a flamingo, a macaw, and—my personal favorite—a giraffe! Another exhibit highlight, the 20-foot T. Rex skeleton, had its own room because, well—it deserved it.

We enjoyed reading how many LEGO bricks were used in each piece, especially the bigger ones. The seven-foot-tall Easter Island Moai sculpture, for example, contains 75,450 bricks! Can you imagine??? Some of the descriptions also reveal how long it took Sawaya to finish the piece.

The descriptions of the pieces based on real works of art also tell what the scale is, which is helpful for imagining the size of the real works. For instance, Sawaya built the Great Sphinx of Giza so that a LEGO minifigure would be the same size standing next to it as a human would be standing next to the actual Great Sphinx. My daughter happened to be carrying a minifigure, and she was in awe of how tiny it looked next to the sculpture!

Kids can enjoy several hands-on activities at the end.

Fun for Kids at The Art of the Brick

My daughter was bummed when we reached the end of the art of the exhibition, because she didn't want it to end. But, some fun, hands-on activities in the last room softened the blow! There were large bins of loose LEGO bricks to build with, a LEGO "sandbox" filled with DUPLO bricks for younger kids to play in, LEGO video games, and a station where kids can color things and see them come to life on a big screen.

A few of the art sculptures also made for some fun photo ops that all the kids got a kick out of. You could sit next to a LEGO man on a bench, for example, or stand underneath LEGO rain clouds.

Overall, I do think older kids would get more out of the experience, especially because little ones would want to touch everything. But I did see several younger kids who seemed to be enjoying themselves. The exhibition is stroller-accessible.

What to Know Before You Go to The Art of the Brick

The Art of the Brick is located in DC's Rhode Island Center at 524 Rhode Island Ave NE. Tickets start at $15.90 for kids (children under 4 are free) and $20.90 for adults. There are discounts for groups of eight or more, seniors, students, and military. While there is a box office on site, it is highly recommended that you buy tickets ahead of time online, as the event may sell out.

There are so many fun photo ops throughout the exhibition!

The website estimates that the experience will take an hour, and that's almost exactly the amount of time my daughter and I spent there. It could take longer if your family wants to read all of the full descriptions.

Note that there is a gift shop in the last room with all sorts of LEGO sets, so be ready for your kiddo to beg for one! Staff will also take your photo in front of a green screen at the beginning of the experience and try to sell it to you at the end (and if you're like me, you'll take the bait). There are some drink and snack items for sale, and there are bathrooms on site.

The Art of the Brick is currently scheduled to be in town through March 31, 2025, but it could get extended, so keep checking back!