Ahead of an exhibition in Sydney, DC has revealed the largest LEGO Batmobile in the world: it measures more than 18 feet long and was made from half a million LEGO bricks.
The life-sized Batmobile is the centerpiece at "The Art of the Brick: DC Comics," a sculptural show by LEGO brick artist Nathan Sawaya, which features more than 120 other works inspired by DC Comics. For the LEGO Batmobile's design, Sawaya collaborated with Jim Lee, DC Entertainment co-publisher and acclaimed artist, who drew the blueprint at the 2015 San Diego Comic-Con. The Art of the Brick: DC Comics is a collaboration between DC Entertainment and Warner Bros. Consumer Products.
Given its size and level of detail, the LEGO Batmobile took Sawaya nearly 500 hours to finish over the course of two months. And at a minimum weight of 1,500 pounds, the art piece is close to the weight of a real car.
This is not the first LEGO sculpture exhibit for Sawaya, but he considers The Art of the Brick a brand-new opportunity to use DC characters and explore art, taking inspiration from the publisher's many titles. In fact, he's been at it for nearly 10 years now — picking up the medium as a way to challenge himself and improve his art.
Sawaya, who used to practice corporate law in New York City, turned to art as a creative outlet. He drew and painted and even sculpted, and one day, he thought about exploring LEGO bricks, having loved them as a child. He started small, eventually making his way to finishing larger pieces until he left his law firm to focus on creating LEGO artwork.
Sawaya said The Art of the Brick started taking shape after he worked with DC for a "We Can Be Heroes" activity. After doing a piece for an auction, he started talking with them about the exhibit and it grew to become a big project.
"It made sense to turn to DC Comics with their superheroes and supervillains for my project," he said.
The Art of the Brick: DC Comics will open in November at the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney.
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