First-of-its-kind Lego event in Halifax draws hundreds of people

If you build it, they will come.

Hundreds of people showed up Saturday for Halifax’s first Bricksplosion.

The event was organized by the Maritime Lego User Group for fans of the iconic toy. More than 30 builders displayed their work at the Mayflower Curling Club.

“I’m blown away,” said the group’s Shawn McLeod. “It’s been packed since the minute the door opened.”

A hundred tables were set up with a variety of creations such as landmarks, Star Wars spaceships and original designs.

There are a lot of exciting artists using Lego in the region, McLeod said.

Zachary Steinman’s work has caught the attention of the Lego company, which has invited him to its headquarters in Denmark next month to showcase six of his pieces. 

“It feels amazing,” said Steinman, who is from Halifax. “At first, I thought it was a joke.”

Steinman said he loved Lego as a kid and began playing with it again during the pandemic. He said he tries to make things that don’t look like Lego.

“Many times I’ll just be playing with parts and they speak to me and I’ll see something,” he said.

Some of the displays are made up of thousands of pieces and take significant time just to set up.

Owen Grace needed several tables for his “City By The Sea.”

“It takes me about five hours to set up the display once I’m here because all the buildings are like their own Lego blocks,” he said.

Grace said he was surprised by the turnout to the event, but he’s not surprised that Lego remains so popular.

It’s because the pieces he got when he was kid can be used with pieces that can be bought in a store today, he said.

“It’s just a matter of your imagination and how you’re going to put it together.”