I am intrigued by the concept of architecture as canvas, where images are rendered with light and texture. The scale of Micropolis doesn’t provide the resolution for landscapes or portraits, it is possible to create geometric designs.
Not every building in the city is in architectural masterpiece. I’m always struck by the offensive beauty of brutalist buildings, and imagine them as great bastions of bureaucracy. When it came time to build a city government building for my city, I had to make it a concrete monstrosity.
Though I have incorporated green space into my buildings, I still felt that I wanted some actual parkland in my layout. This lead to the incorporation of a green belt into the plan.
front
This module came together serendipitously when I found the newer style flower stems and reddish brown antennae in the Pick-A-Brick wall at my local LEGO store. With the addition of a couple other tree varieties, I had a nice little wood.
back
The module is built in two one-block pieces, which makes transport easier. It also opens up the possibility of making a middle section (or sections) to expand the wood for future layouts.
plan
Seen from above, it is easier to make out the path that curves through the wood, crossing the water on a simple concrete bridge. There are cars too, parked at the ends, a mix of visitors and people just taking a break by the side of the road.
This was one of my least planned modules, but I really love how it looks on the table, contrasting (and complementing) the built environment of my other modules.
This model was inspired by a larger, more ambitious architecture. I was struck by a building called The Interface, but the scale of it was much too large to be reasonable in Micropolis. The Silversmith building is my scaled-back compromise.
This model came together from a pair of inspirations: translucent bright green bricks and a lovely building by MVRDV called the Valley. I love the idea of creating architecture that fosters public space and living while still having density.
My ambitious 2019 project was building a Micropolis module every week. The whole thing got derailed by life, but I still managed to build out my massive display for Bricks Cascade 2020. The final models in the series never made it to photography, so I haven’t shared them online until now!
Many of my buildings start with a seed. I really enjoy architecture and spend a fair amount of time looking at pictures of buildings. This started that way, with a picture seen once, that grew in my imagination in an entirely new direction.
I like to think of the evolution of cities. Some buildings come and go as they fit or don’t fit the needs of their surroundings. Other buildings are adapted, taking on new roles in the landscape.
One of the features that I really wanted my Micropolis project to have was public space. I wanted my city to feel like somewhere that people live and not just a cluster of buildings.
I always find it fascinating when houses remain long after the surrounding neighborhood has moved on. Houses where the owners refuse to budge, and developers are forced to build around them.