Arthur Gugick, 1960-2019

Hi all, I know this blog has been dormant for a long time, but I just saw a notice on Facebook that Arthur Gugick died in a car crash a few days ago. Arthur was a father and math teacher and, the reason I'm noting him here, an AFOL. You may remember him primarily for microscale recreations of world architectural landmarks, also amazing mosaics, along with other MOCs that you can see in his Flickr stream. I've featured his work here on multiple occasions, and indeed some of his last creations were ones that would have gone here as well. For instance, he said his Siem Reap was not a specific replica, but rather a general impression based on his memories. Siem Reap is the home to Angkor Wat, and many other temples and other ruins from the Khmer empire - this MOC is a microscale .

Vesak Day

Today (or tomorrow - the date varies a little by country) is Vesak Day, when Buddhists celebrate the birth of Siddhartha Gautama (the Buddha). Artisan Bricks notes the day with this Buddhist Flag. The flag has vertical stripes representing loving kindess (blue), the Middle Path (yellow), various blessings (red), purity (white), and the wisdom of the Buddha's teachings (orange). A sixth stripe is made up of all of the other colors, representing the essenced of light, since the spectrum of light is made up of all of the colors. There are variations in different countries where one or more of the colors is changed.

LEGO Easter story

Video by BW Animations.

He is risen!

He is risen indeed. MOC by Jsnyder002.

The tomb

At the place where he had been crucified there was a garden which had a new tomb in which no one had yet been buried. They laid Jesus there. And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where he was laid. - John 19:41, Mark 15:47
From Brendan Powell Smith's Brick Testament.

Crucifixion

At noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. and at three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”). When some of those standing near heard this, they said, “Listen, he’s calling Elijah.” Someone ran, filled a sponge with wine vinegar, put it on a staff, and offered it to Jesus to drink. “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to take him down,” he said. With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last. - Mark 15:33-37
Crucifixion by John Denno.

Hot Cross Buns

Hot Cross Buns (here in LEGO by Brick Blue Wren) are traditionally served on Good Friday. Historically, bread was made without dairy during lent, and these spiced sweet buns, usually with raisins or currants, mark the end of lent at mid-day on Friday. The spices point back to the embalming spices used in the tomb and the icing cross, of course, points to the cross of Christ.

Via Dolorosa

So the soldiers took charge of Jesus. Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). There they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle. - John 19:16-18
Here is LEGO by Justin M.

Last Supper

Today is Maundy Thursday, when Christians remember the meal that Jesus had with his disciples on the night he was betrayed, and he "took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, 'This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.' In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.' For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes." - 1 Corinthians 11:23-26.
Jake Murray illustrated the Last Supper.

Thingyan

In addition to Passover in Judaism and Holy Week in Christianity, this week also notes Thingyan, the Burmese New Year Festival (and variants in nearby countries), running from today until Sunday. Buddhists practice a number of rituals ushering in the new year, including fasting, ritual washing, and offerings at shrines. The more solemn rites then turn to fun with feasting and ultimately a very wet water festival, closely related to the Songkran Festival in nearby countries, depicted here in LEGO form. Xin Yaw wishes everyone a Happy Myanmar New Year!!!.

Cleansing of the Temple

"The Passover of the Jews was near, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple he found people selling cattle, sheep, and doves, and the money changers seated at their tables. Making a whip of cords, he drove all of them out of the temple, both the sheep and the cattle. He also poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. He told those who were selling the doves, "Take these things out of here! Stop making my Father's house a marketplace!"
Angela Chung illustrates John 2:13-25.

Unleavened bread

At the time of the Exodus, God told Moses to have the people make bread without yeast. This way they could leave at a moment's notice without waiting for the bread to rise. In memory of this, Jews eat matzah, a flatbread made without yeast, during the Passover festival. I don't know who first made this image - I've found it on multiple sites without any attribution, but it's too funny to not post. If anyone knows the origin of this, please let me know in the comments

Sedar

The Sedar is the meal shared last night on the first evening of Passover. Joel Sawady built LEGO Sedar and matzah plates, that sit in the middle of the table. The Sedar plate (here in red), holds six items that point to the Exodus account. The matza, or unleavened bread, sits on a separate plate (here in blue).

Pesach

Pesach, or Passover, begins this evening at sundown, when Jews around the world remember how God led them forth from Egypt in the days of Moses. The celebration lasts a week, but tonight is when most families gather for the traditional sedar meal. Max-to-the-well wrote Pesach in LEGO form. Pesach Sameach!

Palm Sunday

Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. Zechariah 9:9

Today Christians celebrate Palm Sunday, illustrated here by John Denno. So sad that this morning's news was marred by the bombing in Egypt.

Saint Patrick

I arise today, through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through belief in the Threeness, through confession of the Oneness
of the Creator of creation.

Saint Patrick wasn't just a leprechaun who could drink you under the table, he was also the figure largely credited with bringing Christianity to Ireland. The lines above are the opening of the "Breastplate of Saint Patrick", a prayer attributed to him, emphasizing the Christian doctrine of the Trinity. He supposedly illustrated this doctrine using a shamrock as an analogy. This would really be an illustration of the non-Christian doctrine of partialism, but it makes for a nice story and a good national symbol. Here is a scene of Patrick preaching by David FNJ, and shamrocks by Kreativ Snail and Plucky Duck.

Purim

This last weekend was the holiday of Purim, remembering when the Jewish people were saved from destruction, as recorded in the biblical book of Esther. Here are some video versions of that story by Stephanie Englander, the Cohen family, AishVideo, and the Jewish Outreach Initiative.

Mardi Gras

Christians are currently in the season of Lent, a period of reflection leading up to Good Friday and Easter. Lent typically involves prayer, repentance, and fasting (or other self-denial). Mardi Gras, or "Fat Tuesday", which fell on February 28 this year, is the day before Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, time for one last big party before the more austere season. A few years ago the Krewe of Brickbaron, a group of LEGO builders, came up with this scene based on the festivities in New Orleans, Mardi Gras Madness.

Holi

If you use Google, you probably know that today is the Hindu festival of Holi. This is a spring festival celebrated in India and Nepal, noting the end of winter and the triumph of good over evil, when Vishnu defeated Holika to save Prahlada from being burned. It's a time of renewal, of repaying and forgiving debts, and prayers for destruction of inner darkness. It's become known in the west, though, because after these rituals the people take to the streets to party, and a big part of the celebration is an explosion of color, with people throwing colored powder on each other, or dowsing others with squirt-guns full of colorful dyes, creating great pictures or video that get splashed (see what I did there) across the news around the world. Here we see this depicted in LEGO form by Youmi, Itzlar Chamorro Jorganes, and Marquess Kilian Beck.

Durham Cathedral

The Cathedral Church of Christ, Blessed Mary the Virgin and St Cuthbert of Durham was built between 1093 and 1133 as a Catholic cathedral, but now it is Anglican. For the past three years, a public project has been underway to build a LEGO replica, as a way to raise both money and public interest. It's been fun to watch photos in progress on Flickr and Twitter, and now the last brick has been laid. You can see a lot of in-progress photos here, see some films here, or visit the cathedral yourself and see it in real life, as it will be on permanent display.