Interview with Jackie Britton

I've been looking forward to posting another interview, this time from Jackie Britton. As she describes below, she is on the journey of a lifetime, and there's even LEGO involved! Follow Jackie's travels on her blog, Jackie's Mid Life Crisis Gap Year, or jump straight to the photos on her Flickr stream.

GodBricks Jackie, welcome to GodBricks. Before we jump in to a discussion of your travels, let's start with a bit of background about you. Could you tell us a bit about your interest in architecture, art, history and culture?

Jackie Britton I have always been interested in buildings: as a child I used to pore over house plans in old Ideal Home Exhibition catalogues and try to design my own. I find the way people live in their houses, how spaces are laid out and used in different periods and cultures fascinating. On family holidays my parents used to take us to a lot of historic buildings and I would wander around a stately home, castle or Roman villa ruin, imagining myself living there, skipping from room to room as I enacted a day's activities in my head. Since then, my interests have grown to encompass architecture as a whole, as my delight in art generally has grown. It's hard to say why looking at buildings is so compelling for me, but it is. And as for history, I have always loved museums and have been lucky enough to spend twenty-five years working in two of the UK's best, the Science Museum and then the V&A (a museum of art and design). I still doodle house plans in boring meetings too.

GB How about your background with LEGO and other building toys? Is this something that goes back to your childhood, or is it a more recent interest?

JB I have had Lego since I was about four and spent my teenage years building bigger and more complex buildings with interiors – for some reason monasteries and research laboratories figured quite often in my output. It was only much later that I started collecting historic and contemporary building toys more generally, mostly inspired by a small exhibition in London put on by RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects). It had about fifteen or twenty exhibits and I felt a visceral urge to own them all, so off I went looking for them in antique markets and then eBay, only to discover that many hundreds or even thousands of different sets have been produced worldwide since the mid-nineteenth century. I have around 1400 items in my collection and am still finding new things on a regular basis. GB - Check out Jackie's site Architoys to see more on this.

GB Finally, are you a religious person? What is your background with religion?

JB My parents packed me off to Sunday School and I was confirmed in the Church of England when I ws in my mid-teens, but that was mostly because my friends were too (my best friend's father was a vicar). But I don't believe in any gods, spirits or other supernatural powers. I do however see religious belief as a fascinating fruit of human culture, despite all the bad things that have been and continue to be done in its name. I like to say that I regard religion as a spectator sport and certainly belief has inspired much of the world's great art and architecture.

GB Thanks for that background. I've noted your travels on this blog and on MicroBricks before, but for those readers who may be new, could you describe your whole project?

JB Some years ago I was wondering how to decide which of the many competing attractions in a particular country to visit and it struck me that one criteria could be those listed by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites (WHSs). As I looked into the list more, I was taken with an ambition to visit all of them, or at least as many as possible – this is probably the mentality of an inveterate collector showing. When the opportunity came along to take voluntary redundancy from my job I seized the chance, and the generous lump sum payoff, to finally take the gap year I didn't have the guts to do when I was eighteen. Rather than travel continuously, I take a few months break between each trip so my gap year is going to be nearer a gap two and a half years when I run out of funds later this year. So I pick a part of the world, visit all or most of its cultural (as opposed to natural) WHSs, build a microscale Lego model of some aspect of each (or the whole thing if possible) and post an entry on my blog about each site, with photos of the real and Lego versions. I was very lazy last summer though so my blog is, at time of writing, rather behind.



GB So you've been to northern Africa, various European locations, Central and South America, Russia, and are now in Sri Lanka. What other sites will you be visiting in this Asian trip. Do you think you'll have a chance in a future trip to visit the holy sites associated with Judaism, Christianity and Islam in the Mid-East?

JB The plan for this trip is to go on to India, Nepal, Bangladesh (subject to getting a visa in India), Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, Indonesia, The Philippines, South Korea and Japan. I would have liked to visit Pakistan as well, but that didn't seem wise, or indeed possible as an independent traveller. Two well known highlights from these countries will be the Taj Mahal and Angkor, but also included, alongside all the temples and fortifications are three mountain railways in India and some colonial urban architecture. I would very much like to visit the Middle East and regret that I didn't have more time when in Syria on a business trip five years ago; although I did visit the eighth century Umayyad mosque in Damascus, built partly on Roman foundations. At the very least I hope to be able to visit Egypt in the not too distant future.



GB How did you decide to document your travels in LEGO? What are some of the challenges that you've faced in your LEGO building?

JB I'm not too sure where the idea came from, it just occurred to me one day, whilst I was still in my job and planning my future. As soon as it did though, I got very excited and realised that whilst it would sound rather mad to many of my friends, it was exactly what I wanted to do! I had wanted to find some way of responding to the places I saw, to feel that I'd really looked them rather than just taken some photographs and moved on. If I had the talent I might have gone with drawing or painting, but I create much better in three dimensions. Also you're never bored with a Lego set! The biggest challenge was deciding what to bring, and how much. I chose the limited range of colours by doing a Google image search on 'world heritage site' and getting an overall impression of the colours on screen. And I spent a very happy time scanning through pretty much the entire catalogue of parts on Bricklink looking for ideas of useful bits. Beyond that, it soon became clear to me that for most of my constructions I was only going to be able to build one facade of a building, rather than in the round. I also have to make cunning use of parts. So for instance, while I only have two 1x1 bricks in each colour, I can use the end of slopes and the back of panels when I need more blank wall. The backs of my models are a mess, often held up with a shonky network of bits in other colours to keep the SNOT sections in place. I occasionally take pictures of the backs, which you can find in my Flickr stream.



GB So many of your recreations have focused on religious structures - temples, cathedrals, etc. Can you point to a favorite or favorites from among these MOCs?

JB I think my favourites are the really complex ones, with lots of fiddly bits and those needing a higher than usual level of cunning. The more parts I've used, the happier I am. So favourites would include the MOCs for: the monastery of Guadalupe;



Burgos cathedral;



the Templo do San Domingo in Zacatecas;



the church in Olinda;



and the entrance tower of Novodevichy Convent.



GB Is there some MOC that gave you the most trouble in capturing the essence of the real thing?

JB I spent a very long time trying to work out what to build for Machu Picchu and had a few false starts where it built something very tiny and underwhelming, just to try to get over my builder's block. It is such a huge iconic archealogical site that I wanted to try to do some justice to. In the end, I had to go for an impression of part of it and cheat a little with cheese blocks just balanced on top of the walls for the steep gable ends.



GB Is there some insight you've gained in your visits to various religious sites around the world, whether personal religious growth or more cultural insights into humanity's search for an experience of the divine?

JB Hmm, interesting question. I have found that the more I see of more religions, the more firmly I know myself to be atheist, not that I was exactly ambivalent before. I see that throughout history, people have looked for an explanation of things they don't understand, tried to control the world around them or found solace in the face of a difficult life, but all in such completely different ways and sure that theirs was the religion that was right. It seems to me that in the face of these needs, it is inevitable that some kind of belief system will arise. But seeing the impact of European missionary fervour on the indigenous people of Latin America was also a powerful reminder that it never turns out well when people decide to impose their beliefs on others. The resurgence of Orthodox worhip in post-soviet Russia also shows how tenacious religious belief is even when determined attempts are made to stamp it out.





GB What is the one site you most want to visit (and build) in your future travels, if there were no limits due to money or access issues?

JB It's almost impossible to chose just one, but I'll go for the Potala Palace in Lhasa, Tibet, the winter palace of the Dalai Lama since the seventh century. Timbuktu in Mali comes a close second though.

GB Thank you so much for your time! Happy travels, and I'm looking forward to following your future adventures and LEGO creations.

JB Thank you, it has been a pleasure!

Interview with Joanna Brichetto of Bible Belt Balabusta

As a little Hanukkah gift, I'm happy to bring to you another interview with someone who has been featured here on GodBricks several times in the past. Joanna Brichetto's blog, Bible Belt Balabusta presents "hands-on, Jewy projects with kids, for parents and teachers." She presents creative ways to use toys, including of course LEGO, in teaching kids about their religious heritage. BTW, on her blog she defines 'balabusta' as "Yiddish for female boss of the home, a praiseworthy Jewish homemaker."

GB: Joanna, thanks for joining us. Let's start out by learning a little bit about you. Could you tell us a little about your personal religious journey. Were you raised in a religious home? Is this something that became more important to you later in life, e.g. after having kids of your own? How has living in the Bible Belt affected you?

JB: I was raised Protestant and didn't knowingly meet a Jewish person until after college. I met Mr. Right—Jewish Person #2 —studied Judaism and became Jewish shortly before our marriage. So, I know what's it's like to be an absolute beginner. And I know that doing, making, creating can go a long way in forming a Jewish identity, whatever that phrase may happen to mean. The Bible Belt: well, I've always lived here, which is the reason for the bizarre delay in my meeting anyone Jewish at all. Now, I am often the one Jewish person that other people meet, which means I end up representing an entire People, which is absurd. In the early days, before the Internet, I had to make my own resources because there were few available locally. Everything was DIY, including the raising of children.



GB: Okay, could you also tell us about your background with LEGO? Did you build with bricks as a kid? Or did this start with you becoming a mom?

JB: I got two big LEGO sets when I was about 7, and I loved them. Back then, they were marketed to children, not necessarily to a specific gender, and the packaging reflects this beautiful egalitarianism. After a few years, they got stowed in the attic. Twenty years later, when I had my daughter, they were ready for round #2. My children and I add to the collection thanks to yard sales, hand-me-downs and generous grandmothers.

GB: What's the basic philosphy behind your blog? Why do you use LEGO (and Playmobil, and pez dispensers, and swim toys, etc) to teach your kids about their heritage?

JB: To show how easy and fun it can be to use everyday stuff—as long as the materials are irresistible—to explore and enrich what it means to be Jewish. My big goal is to support spending time with children making, doing, being together in a meaningful, enjoyable way.



GB: How did this idea start? What was your first inspiration?

JB: By using what materials and objects I had on hand. There were no local sources for Jewish toys. We had to convert or make our own accompaniments to holidays. I probably started by recreating objects with food: edible crafts, like an edible dreidel.



GB: How do your kids respond? Do they like it? Or do they sometimes say 'aw, Mom, we're just trying to play here, don't make us learn things'?

JB: So far, so good. Playing is learning, and vice versa. We don't sit down to "learn," we just play, build, cook, create. And, stories are stories. Random action figures become Odysseus and Telemachus in the bathtub, for example (with LEGO Scylla and Charibdis). We don't necessarily play Jewish stories unless we are approaching a holiday.

GB: What sort of feedback have you gotten from other parents and teachers?

JB: A few people "get" it, and these are the ones I try to think about when I post. I love these people. They understand that a good toolbox contains many, many tools.

GB: What is your favorite LEGO project that you've done?

JB: The lopsided, mishmash of a Temple that became the setting for the Hanukkah story. My preschooler helped build it, and then helped demonstrate the story for his class. We rigged a battery menorah and brought in a stuffed pig and tiny jug of olive oil. It was hideous and it was perfect.



GB: What is one thing you'd really like to build with LEGO?

JB: Gosh. I can't pick one. But I'm intrigued by Technic. I bought the new book, The UnOfficial LEGO Technic Builder's Guide by Pawel Kmiec, and most of it is way over my head at the moment.



GB: Do you have a favorite LEGO creation by someone else that highlights Jewish themes?

JB: I appreciate them all. The Jewish-themed posts you find for GodBricks blow me away, whether or not they are considered "Jewish" by their own makers. The Brick Bible is, of course, spectacular and complex. Val Glaser's cake toppers for bar and bat mitzvahs are great. The group Jewish LEGO projects by Building Blocks Workshops sound promising, education-wise. But, my favorites will always be creations by children.



GB: Do you have any suggestions for parents from all faith traditions on how to use play creatively to teach our kids?

JB: Start with the stories. Interpret your own stories with LEGO or edible components or whatever materials you absolutely love to handle. If you are having fun, chances are, so is your kid.

GB: Thanks so much for answering my questions! I look forward to seeing your next LEGO inspiration.

Interview with Alyska Bailey Peterson

After featuring Alyska Bailey Peterson's (aka PointyKitty) beautiful stained glass MOCs several times recently, I really wanted to learn more. So it's my pleasure to bring you another interview, from Pointy Kitty Studios in Madison Wisconsin.



GodBricks: Could you tell us a little bit about yourself, including the background of your interest in art and in LEGO?

Alyska Bailey Peterson: My arts background is a bit varied – I have degrees in documentary film production and commercial photography, worked professionally for about a decade in marketing and event photography, and now have been focusing my studio's offerings on two particular niches: earthy, handmade gemstone and metalsmithed jewelry, and more recently, jury slides and marketing/branding materials for other artists.

I’ve been interested in Legos since I was a kid, and used to beg for them instead of the “girl toy” in my McDonalds Happy Meals, but I really started exploring the medium and working with them again a couple of years ago after hearing about my friends’ and partners’ experience at the Brickworld convention in Chicago, IL.

When trying to decide what sort of building I wanted to get back into, one of them joked about me “liking to do things the hard way,” after I mentioned building in Modulex, and I settled on transparent bricks as something challenging (I like a challenge!) but still mostly-accessible.

GB: We've featured a number of your LEGO renditions of stained glass windows here on GodBricks. Did you first become interested in these for their artistic merit, their religious significance, or some combination of these?

ABP: My first exposure to stained glass work was in churches, first as a young child, but especially when, as a teen, my youth group attended services of different denominations and faiths to help us better understand the context of each group’s belief systems.

The windows were striking examples of visual storytelling, which was a huge draw for me, and I found it interesting that despite the widely varying belief systems of the different services we attended (both in their message, and the manner in which they were communicated to their followers), these colorful glass window-stories were a common thread between all of them.

My grandfather was also a self-taught stained glass artisan, and had just started teaching me the craft when he passed away about a decade ago. While I have never attained any proficiency at actual stained glass work, I often wonder what he would think of my Lego renditions.

GB: Tell us about the Survivors of Trauma window. What drew you to this piece? What is it's significance to you?

ABP: This window was significant to me for a number of different reasons. The tree of life itself has long been important to me as a metaphor for the interconnectedness of all life on our planet and for the livelihood and resilience of the human spirit. The majority of my family tree also originates in Ireland.



When I was able to discern the actual geographic location of the window and read the Survivors of Trauma Center’s mission “to assist those affected by the troubles in North Belfast and help them transition from victims to survivors, empowering them to become vibrant once again,” there was an additional layer of meaning for me, as I am a trauma survivor myself.

GB: How about the creation series? How did you choose to take on this project?

ABP: The theme for the 2011 Brickworld convention is “Five,” and so I started looking for something that I could work on in a series. After flipping through a number of books, and looking at pictures online, I came across Aidan McRae Thomson’s Creation series on their Flickr stream while looking at other religious stained glass windows in Ireland and Great Britain.



The windows were gorgeous – visually striking, and I thought they’d translate well into Lego. The only problem is that there are six days in the Creation Story!

As I went through Thomson’s images of his work, it was that final day, the creation of man and beasts, that would be the most difficult to translate into Lego due partly to the color palette, but moreso due to all of the painting on the glass!

I’ve noodled around some with trying to find a way to do justice to translating that final panel into Lego, but haven’t found anything satisfactory yet, and I’m a terrible perfectionist.

GB: Is there a particular day of creation that is your favorite? Or one that is a particular challenge?

ABP: I like all of them for different reasons, but I think Day Four, the Sun & Moon panel is my favorite.



As for the most challenging? That would have to be Day One: Light and Dark.



The building of the piece itself was no more difficult than any of the other panels, but the transparent purple and transparent light blue bricks are nearly a decade out of print, so I’ve spent the better part of a year repeatedly clearing out the secondary market on multiple continents to simply get enough pieces to complete the piece!

GB: At some points in your stained glass recreations you use transparent bricks, and at other points you use transparent plates, to get a different texture effect. How did you come upon this technique?

ABP: Mostly, by necessity. In some cases, not all parts come in all colors. In other cases, I used plates instead of bricks to either attain more detail or smoother lines, or to create deeper or lighter colors.



When I started with the creation windows, I realized that I’d need to be even more creative than working in a brick-and-plate-only palette to achieve some of the necessary colors, and started working in round bricks and plates, cones, tiles, and cheese wedges to help vary textures and colors.



GB: Centuries ago, stained glass windows in churches served a didactic purpose to teach a largely illiterate congregation stories from the Bible, or of the saints. Does your work have any message?

ABP: I don’t have any specific message attached to the pieces I do, aside from showing that Lego is a creation and building medium that can be utilized long after your teen years, and is limited only by what you, the creator, can come up with.

I love all of the sets that Lego produces, but find it really remarkable what happens when some really creative people set aside the instruction books, and just..build. Put us all in a room together, and it’s amazing the sorts of things we create.

GB: What's next for you in this area? Are you planning on doing day 6? Do you have other stained glass windows in mind?

ABP: In addition to the Creation series, I’m currently finishing up a large 2x4’ stained glass spectrum sundial to exhibit at Brickworld 2011 in Chicago, IL, in June.



After that, I’m looking at doing the “Scientists and Technicians Window” at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. It’s on the south side of the cathedral, just west of the tomb of Woodrow Wilson.



The window commemorates America’s exploration of space and man’s first steps on the moon. In the upper center of the window is a 7.18-gram basalt lunar rock from the Sea of Tranquility!

Once again, a huge thanks to Alyska, both for the interview and also for sharing her wonderful MOCs with us. If you're going to BrickWorld in Chicago next month, be sure to check out her work in person.

Interview with Mezba Mahtab

I'm very happy to bring you another interview. This time, let's learn some more about Mezba Mahtab. Perhaps inevitably, since so much of the LEGO community is found in Europe and North America, this blog tends to tilt towards Christian-themed MOCs (also, I'm sure my own religious bias plays a role in what I select). There aren't very many Islamic-themed LEGO sites out there. One of the most extensive is Mezba's Teaching Kids the Holy Quran, which illustrates passages from the Quran using LEGO. I asked him to tell us more about that project, and also just about himself as a Muslim and an AFOL.



Godbricks: Let's start out with learning something about you. Where are you from and what's your religious background? Were you raised in the Muslim faith, or is it something you came to more recently?

Mezba Mahtab: I was born a Bangladeshi, and brought up in the Middle East. My family moved to Toronto, Canada when I was 18. I was raised as a practicing Muslim, but what may interest many people is that I have learned more about being a Muslim and about Islam by living in Canada. Living with, and having the lovely opportunity of meeting with people of various faiths and cultures often means we grow more curious about our own.

GB: How about your background with LEGO? Has this hobby always been a part of your life? Did you go through any sort of Dark Age?

MM: I have to credit my wife for bringing me out of my two-decade-long Dark Ages. As a kid, I grew up with plenty of LEGO. My first set was the LEGO 6374-1 (Holiday Home), a set I still have, in addition to various Pirate and LEGO System sets. However, for twenty years, LEGO lay as some forgotten chapter of my life, until early last year.

On our anniversary, my wife surprised me with Brickbeard’s Bounty (LEGO 6243-1), having once heard how I had often wanted a LEGO ship as a kid. Suddenly, it was as if I was ten, and suddenly my LEGO collection had grown tenfold – and then I discovered sales, clearances, and the wonderful AFOL community. I sometimes think my wife regrets getting me that gift, especially after I found out about Bricklink!



GB: What led you to combine your Islamic faith and your LEGO hobby?

MM: I think it was a natural progression that combined my hobbies of blogging, photography and LEGO. I have a personal blog (a Bengali in T.O.) where many times I have discussed (sometimes controversial) topics related to Islam and Muslims. I often find that the Quran is being quoted out of context to make a point, even by Muslims.



Just to give you an example, most sane people would say that Muslims and non-Muslims should live together in harmony and in friendship. Yet there are some people who claim the two groups cannot be friends, and they point to verse 1 from chapter 60 in the Quran. In there, God is telling the Muslims, “Do not take My enemy and your enemy as friends (or protectors)”.

Yet, as my rendering shows, the context of how the verse was revealed, the application of it, and the VERY NEXT VERSE (verse 8) that immediately clarify it, all leads to a much more practical, moderate, and saner conclusion.



I therefore thought, and thought hard, of how I could have an interesting medium to preach the Quran and its moderate message, and this led me to toys, and LEGO.

GB: Could you describe for us the concept behind Teaching Kids the Holy Quran? What is your goal and how did you start this project?

MM: To answer this, you have to understand that one of the quirks about being Muslim is that we believe faith alone is not enough; we also have to have good actions and do acts of worship for eternal salvation. For this reason, we are taught at an early age how to read the Quran (as an act of worship). Basically, we learn to read the Arabic script, and most of us can recite the Arabic verses, without knowing or understanding ANY of it.

So when I wanted to develop a medium to help Muslims understand the Quran, I wanted to reach kids, because they are most inquisitive, and as a kid I remember being curious myself as to what these verses meant. LEGO seemed a perfect fit.

I started this project when I purchased the Prince of Persia sets. The character of Nizam seemed great as a villain, which I needed for my first rendering (Chapter 107, which dealt with Alms Giving).



At that time, the blog was more of a Quran project than a LEGO project, and so was quite minimalistic in nature. Even though I had come out of my Dark Ages, I hadn’t done a lot of building of MOCs; it was mostly building official sets. For my project, I used minifigures and some basic builds. However, as this blog has progressed, I have started to include more and more LEGO details into my work.

GB: What sort of reception have you gotten from the Islamic community? What sort of reception have you gotten from the LEGO community? Have you received any criticism?

MM: I have to say the reception from the Islamic community has been fantastic. I started the blog in October 2010, and already the blog averages anywhere between 100 to 300 daily visits, with the highest daily visitor count close to 500. My Facebook page, started quite recently, has already over 250 fans. MuslimMatters, the no.1 Muslim blog, as voted by the renowned Brass Crescent, had just picked my blog as Art of the Month in January. Two teachers in private schools in Ontario, Canada, as well as teachers in Abu Dhabi, UAE, have emailed me that they use my blog as visual aids in their classrooms. The blog has also been linked to from numerous blogs, as stated on my “Mentions” page.



I feel my blog still has a lot of potential to grow in the LEGO community. Till this time, most of my efforts to promote the blog has been in the Muslim blogosphere and Islamic forums. I felt that, to be taken seriously, the blog has to first achieve credibility and acceptance from the Muslim community at large, which has happened. So far, my work is quite unique; there are no blogs or websites that combine Islam and LEGO like I do.

I feel that, to get much more prominence in the larger LEGO community, I have to build more and include more LEGO architecture in the details. Till now, I had been in graduate school, which is now done, so I have more time on my hands to devote to this project. There are two huge chapters in the Quran that are coming up on my blog soon; one of them deals with the story of Prophet Yusuf (Joseph in the Bible), that I plan to build with lots and lots of details.



I am pleased that due to my strict adherence to some guidelines, I have not run into much controversy or criticism with my project yet.

GB: You mentioned that you may turn this into a book. Could you give us any more on this? Is this something we can expect to find in bookstores soon?

MM: It is every bloggers’ dream to have their work published as a best seller book, is it not? :-) I see a lot of potential in this – most of the fans on my Facebook page are Muslim mothers with young families, and they love it as they can use it to teach their children. Every kid loves LEGO and toys, and there isn’t a similar Islamic project online.

I have already been in talks with a couple of publishers of children’s books, so do wish me luck, hopefully we can get something out soon.

GB: Many of our readers are familiar with the Brick Testament, where Brendan uses minifigs to depict Jesus and other Biblical characters, but my understanding is that Islam frowns upon depictions of individuals, or at least of certain individuals (e.g. the Prophet Muhammad). How has that limited you? Or how have you found creative ways to work around this?

Islam does frown upon on depicting notable figures or other Beings such as God or angels in sculptures and other depictions; however if you look at Islamic history they have had a rich history of great art work. I think the original dislike of depicting notable historical figures is that it leads to some form of idolatry – the example often cited is that in historic times people did not worship Krishna or Buddha as gods, yet made sculptures to remember them. Later generations then went to the next level and started to worship these idols. Thus, even when Hollywood movies such as The Message was released, the character of Prophet Muhammad, or his immediate family such as Ali, or close friends such as Umar, were not depicted or shown on screen.

I have devised some guidelines of my own that I follow in my portrayals, which while not limiting, makes the depictions more creatively challenging. Take the example of the Islamic story of Christmas where I had to show Maryam (Mary) and the birth of Isa (Jesus Christ) without depicting either of them.



I also know from general experience that when Muslims are viewing an art work telling Islamic stories, they will allow certain leeway (for example portraying some of the Companions of the Prophet) while having certain reservations (such as definitely NOT portraying the Prophet Muhammad or his immediate family). As an artist who is working to benefit understanding of Islam, I have to respect those objections.

GB: Is there an illustration of the Quran on your site that you are particularly proud of?

MM: I particularly like Chapter 105 (The Elephant), as the depictions follow very closely with the aims of this blog – it’s a good story told in a simple projection, easy enough for kids to understand while also good enough for adults.



Most of the Chapters that I started building are small chapters, usually the first ones taught to Muslim kids to memorize, and contain a small number of verses. The Chapter (The Cave), which amongst others deals with the stories of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus, the Gog and Magog, the Green One and the legendary character known as Zul Qarnayn, had over a 100 verses – that was the largest chapter done completely so far on my blog.



In my graduate school last year, we were studying the financial crisis of 2008, and this is when I started to build Chapter 83 – the Defrauders (http://readwithmeaning.wordpress.com/2010/12/14/chapter-83-al-mutaffifin-the-defrauders-verses-1-6/ ), and what most pleased me about this chapter was how I managed to portray ancient verses in a modern setting.

GB: Is there a passage of the Quran that gave you particular difficulties, or that you skipped because it was too difficult to depict in LEGO form?

There is a chapter in the Quran that deals with God Himself (Chapter 112) that was hard to portray following my guidelines, as it was just about God (and the Islamic rejection of Trinity). So I took the aid of characters in a multi-faith setting to illustrate that chapter.



A challenge (in general) in depicting Quranic verses is that unlike the Bible, which is a collection of linear historic stories or personal accounts of historic events in chronological order, the Quran is more of a conversation between God and man. It’s Allah’s instructions to Muslims, and the flow is not always of events or stories in order. For example, Allah will be talking about unbelievers and the arrogance of oppressors, and then you will have the story of Pharoah and the tribes of Israel. In other places, God talks about how to deal with hardships, and then the story of Ayub (Job in the Bible), or how Yusuf (Joseph) was imprisoned, will be mentioned. So the stories in Quran are more to illustrate God’s instructions, or to provide an example for people to relate with, as God is relating certain commandments. Thus, when portraying these verses, which sometimes jump across various related stories, I have to keep the flow in mind for the depictions.

An example of this was Chapter 18 (The Cave), which talks about Trinity, Faith, oppressors, Pride, denial of God, etc. all in one chapter, and there are many sub-story branches within.



GB: What's next for you? Do you see the Teaching Kids the Holy Quran project going on for a long time in the future? Or do you have another project in the works?

MM: Right now I plan to be committed to the Teaching Kids the Holy Quran project for the conceivable future; time and opportunity permitting. Currently, the blog holds just over 450 illustrations of over 21 chapters of the Quran. The Quran has a total of 114 chapters, containing over 6000 verses in all, so there is clearly a long way to go.

GB: A couple of questions apart from your site, but just for you as a Muslim and a LEGO fan: A few years ago there were some in the Muslim world who called for a boycott on LEGO and all things Danish in the wake of the controversy (and violence) following a series of cartoons in a Danish newspaper. Has that gone away, or is there still some suspicion of LEGO?

MM: In my opinion, the Muslim world is too big and diverse to have a unified stance on this; we saw that most of the boycotts came from the affluent Gulf Arab countries, while, sadly, the violent reactions came from poor communities in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

I was visiting the United Arab Emirates during the cartoon crisis, and remember going into Carrefour (which coincidentally is a European owned store). They had an empty shelf that used to contain dairy products from Denmark, with a sign saying this was due to the boycott. I do NOT remember there being a boycott of LEGO though – the boycott seemed to be restricted to dairy products, and that too in Western owned stores. I was in UAE again a couple of months ago, and saw LEGO being sold in Dubai Mall at the Hamley’s store. Most of the rhetoric against LEGO seemed to come from a few loudmouth radicals, with hardly any noticeable consequence. I think the Muslim world in general has moved on from the cartoon crisis.



GB: On the other hand, two of the upcoming LEGOland parks will be in primarily Muslim countries (Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates). Do you see LEGO as becoming more popular outside of its traditional European and American markets (I realize you're in Canada, but you probably have a much greater insight into this than I do)?

MM: I think it’s a fantastic idea. UAE and Malaysia are both excellent tourist destinations with lots of visitors, and I can see LEGOland doing quite well. Many Asian countries such as India have a growing middle class with greater disposable income, so there is no reason why LEGO shouldn’t do well. However it needs to differentiate itself from other ‘block’ companies. Many people in Asia still see LEGO as just another construction toy, not the construction toy.

GB: GodBricks readers are very familiar with LEGO depictions of many of the great Christian cathedrals. On the other hand, there are so many beautiful mosques that would make amazing MOCs. Is there a particular mosque that you would love to see made in LEGO form? Or one that has already been made in LEGO?

MM: I would love to see the Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi, UAE, being made into a LEGO. It’s grand enough to be visually dazzling, yet simplistic enough in its design to be easily converted to LEGO. I visited the mosque in January and was amazed at the splendid architecture.



A couple of other mosques that can be converted to LEGO and would look dazzling would be the Blue Mosque of Istanbul, Turkey or the Jama Masjid of Delhi, India.



GB: Thanks for all your responses! Before we go, since most of my readers are probably not Muslim, is there one message you would like them to hear about Islam or the Quran?

MM: First of all, I would like to offer my thanks for giving me this opportunity to share a bit of my work and project with you and your readers. Long before I started this project, I followed your blog and the amazing links you share.

Second, for any non-Muslims who are curious about Islam, I would like to say that the Quran is only about one central message – there is One God and He alone should be worshiped without any partners, and Muhammad was sent to preach that Message, just like previous prophets Musa (Moses) and Isa (Jesus). This message doesn’t leave much room for violence, and I invite everyone to read and judge the Quran themselves. And for explanations about historical context and explanations, they can visit my blog.

Regards,
Mezba

Interview with Brendan, part 2

This is the continuation of an interview with Brendan Powell Smith, creator of the
Brick Testament. Please also read part 1 of the interview.

GodBricks: Currently you've been going back and recovering some of the stories that you addressed earlier, either expanding them or bringing in more advanced building techniques. How do you balance this versus addressing other parts of the Bible you have yet to cover?

Brendan Powell Smith: I ache to return to illustrating parts of the Bible that I have not yet covered at all. But the ache I felt when looking at my earliest illustrative work was worse, so it has won out for the past several months. I assume many people who come to The Brick Testament start with the beginning of Genesis, and I was just really bothered that my best work was not what people saw when they first visited.



So I feel committed to this re-illustration project for a while. I am not sure where I'll be able to draw the line and feel OK leaving the old stuff there. I kind of want to re-do all of Exodus and The Wilderness, though I know that's crazy. And I think I want to get to new material more than I want to spruce up those sections. Maybe. Haven't decided yet. Definitely have to at least close out the Abraham stories for consistency's sake, and I will very likely do a bit more work on the latter half of Genesis.

GB: Much of what you've done has been fairly straight-forward narrative. Some sections, though, have been less linear storytelling, like the law and the epistles, or used fantastic imagery like Revelation. Of course there's a ton of more poetic material you've left largely untouched, like the Psalms, Proverbs, and the major and minor prophets. Do you plan on tackling these areas? What additional challenges might these pose to you as an illustrator?

BPS: I would definitely like to illustrate a fair amount of material from Psalms, Proverbs, and the writings of the books of the Prophets.



I think people have a very misguided idea that the Psalms are a "nice" section of the Bible because they have heard Psalm 23 and assume they are all poetic praises of how good God is to people. I think this stands in need of correction.

GB: Do you have a favorite scene or MOC from the Brick Testament so far?

BPS: I am particularly proud of how I captured the insanity and horribleness of Revelation, whether it's the fiery balls of blood and hail that burn up a third of the Earth, or all the islands sinking into the sea and people attempting to kill themselves to avoid being tortured by locust creatures with scorpion tails, people worshiping a seven-headed beast from the sea, or Jesus trampling people to death in a giant, gory wine press.



I waited seven years to illustrate Revelation, because I knew my skills needed to be well-honed first, and I think that strategy was the right approach.

GB: Is there a particular scene or MOC that was particularly difficult to build in LEGO form?

BPS: Solomon's Temple took a lot of planning and patience to build inside and out. More recently I remember spending an enormous amount of time setting up a single shot of the victims of The Flood drowning in a watery grave. For the latter, I used a bunch of LEGO-constructed props to hold all the people and animals in place.



The supports themselves I hid off-camera, behind other people or animals, or had to resort to photoshopping out. It's the same technique I had used for the Battle in Heaven scene in Revelation.

GB: As I recall, there were already other niche books aimed at the AFOL community (things like books on Mindstorms programming), but The Brick Testament: Stories from the Book of Genesis was probably the first AFOL-produced book intended for a wider audience. There have since been others, like I LEGO NY, LEGO a Love Story, and the books by Sean Kenney. Were there any obstacles to getting a LEGO book published? Do you have any suggestions for others who would like to turn their hobby into a book?

BPS: The hardest thing is to find a publisher who is as excited about your idea as you are. After the first major press that The Brick Testament got, several people suggested I try to get a book published. I had a friend of a friend in the industry, and got a recommendation for an agent who could shop the book idea around for me. There was a certain amount of interest, but nothing came of it, so I assumed that was that. Then a few months later after some more good press, the president of a small publishing house happened to hear me interviewed on NPR and contacted me, and that turned into a three book series.





So it's hard to know how to give good advice. Make something new and awesome with wide appeal, and things will possibly work out for you.

GB: Do you think you'll ever finish this project? I don't mean will you build a MOC for every single verse in the Bible, but do you think you'll get to a point where you've illustrated all of the passages that interest you? Or perhaps will you simply get sick of this whole project? If so, do you have other projects in mind for the future? Perhaps your take on holy books from other religious traditions?

BPS: I don't know if I'll ever feel done with it, and I'm fine with that. It's nice to have a project I can just keep adding to and improving on indefinitely. Even if, in a few years from now, I've actually gotten around to illustrating all the Bible material I'm interested in illustrating, I wonder if I'll always feel compelled to go back and do a better job re-illustrating the oldest parts of the site. Even if my building, photography, and storytelling skills plateau at some level, it seems as though LEGO will always be putting out a wider and wider variety of minifig faces, hairstyles, outfitting, and accessories that I will wish I had had when I first illustrated a certain story. Or when I illustrated it the second or third time. :)

If I'm not at all sick of the project after nine years, it's hard to imagine that will ever happen, but who can know for sure? There's always the possibility of starting in on a new holy book after finishing the Bible, but I don't feel like I'm nearly as studied in other religions, so it would take a fair amount of groundwork first. I've started reading the Book of Mormon, but haven't gotten all that far, and don't like that it apes the writing style of the King James Bible, making it difficult to follow. I could get interested in illustrating some of the New Testament apocrypha, like the Acts of Thomas it which Jesus's twin goes to India, or the Apocalypse of Paul in which the apostle Paul gets a gruesome and detailed tour of the tortures of Hell.



But I if I had to pick one thing right now, I am most tempted to illustrate the works of Josephus concerning the Jewish-Roman war of 66-70 AD. It is chock full of great little stories very reminiscent of those in the Bible, and in some ways feels like a continuation of the epic story of the Israelites that the Bible begins in 4,000 BC and carries up to about 60 AD. So it's sort of a nice Bible epilogue or final act. And it's just as violent and terrible, but almost definitely more true.

GB: Okay, I'll let you get back to your bricks. Thanks for joining us here at GodBricks!

BPS: OK, back to building! Thanks for the thoughtful questions, and as always, thank you for your continued interest and support.

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I hope that you enjoyed this new feature here at GodBricks. In the weeks and months to come I plan to have additional interviews with builders with different perspectives on the intersection between LEGO and religion.