The Hungarian artist, 48, used 1.8 million pieces to create this work exhibited in Budapest. A team of 90 people was needed to assemble the Lego tram.
As a child, Balazs Doczy had difficulty obtaining Lego in Hungary behind the Iron Curtain. Today he builds models with 1.8 million parts, like this colorful tram that has been featured in Budapest since November. In the heart of the capital, the vehicle was assembled by a team of 90 people totaling some 6,800 hours of work over a period of one month.
The 48-year-old artist attended the start of the assembly before leaving for Majorca, where he works as a diving instructor, between two missions in Hungary inspired by his passion for the Danish firm’s games. 11 meters long, the dapper tramway, built to order from the city’s transport and tourism organizations and on display until January 6, fascinates passers-by. “We’ve never seen anything like this!”enthuses Malaysian tourist Lucas Chang, 32, while a retired teacher, Eva Lakatos, boasts “a unique attraction”admiring “the determination behind such a feat”.
“Megastructures”
This is Balazs Doczy’s most ambitious project to date, which intervenes above all upstream, like an architect resolving “technical challenges”. “Building these megastructures has nothing to do with ordinary Lego projects”he tells AFP. “First I draw sketches on the computer, stacking bricks virtually, defining the appropriate scale and key elements”.
“Every construction has an Achilles heel, I focus on this point and once resolved, the rest flows naturally”explains Mr. Doczy, emphasizing that the slightest imperfection can cause the whole thing to falter. Hence the use of strong glue and the installation of a metal frame to ensure the solidity of the whole.
Fascinated since a young age by Lego, he “begged the neighbors’ children to collect their boxes and build ever larger structures” with his older brother. Because coins were rare in the Central European country then an integral part of the communist bloc. “We were already ambitious back then”he said with a smile.
As he grew up, he abandoned his occupation before finding the flame again in contact with his great-nephew. “My brother and I looked at each other, our eyes lit up and we decided to dive again”. While moving from Indonesia to his native Hungary, in 2013 he founded a family business called “Brick workshop” and multiplies grandiose initiatives.
“Certified professional”
He quickly gained attention by designing models of St. Stephen’s Basilica and Heroes’ Square in Budapest. He also reproduced in life size the statue of a bridge in the capital, with the image of a lion, at the cost of almost sleepless nights. By imagining his tramway, for the first time he voluntarily left free spaces in order to “allow everyone to express their creativity and transform sculpture into a community work”.
Since 2017, Balazs Doczy has been officially designated “Lego certified professional” (LCP). This prestigious title, granted to only around twenty creators in the world, rewards those who are capable of imagining “original and innovative designs pushing the boundaries of creativity and construction”specifies a spokesperson for the company.
If he does not receive financial compensation, he “can regularly consult other LCPs”has access to exclusive software and “can order from 14,000 different parts” made in the group’s factories, explains the delighted artist.
But for some of his ideas, he has to explore second-hand markets to find old bricks, even dating back to the 1970s of his childhood. He sometimes examines the underwater depths, his second passion, but he has never discovered any in the abyss. “They are too precious to throw away”he whispers.
