Lego-Artwork Coming To Solon Historical Dec. 3

SOLON, OH — Todd Wolf spent more than 400 hours creating a Lego-based replica of Akron's Stan Hywet Hall. The model has over 60,000 Lego-pieces. After his son went to bed, he would squeeze in a few hours of delicate work, mapping out and completing his build.

That model, and dozens and dozens of others like it, will be on display at the Solon Historical Society's 4th Annual Lego Open House on Dec. 3. The event features the work of the North Eastern Ohio Lego Users Group (NEOLUG), a group Wolf is part of.

That day, builders from across the region will bring their MOCS — My Own Creations — to the Solon Historical Society building, 33975 Bainbridge Rd. MOCS, as their name implies, do not come with an easy-to-follow guide on how to create the build. Instead, master Lego builders use generic pieces to create their own masterpiece, using nothing but a photo or vision.

Wolf said he usually only has a picture to build toward. That means, for example, that when he's building a model of Stan Hywet or the William G. Mather Steamship, he'll have a photo of the house or boat handy and try to build his set into that image.

This year's winter-themed, family-friendly event will allow adults and children to participate in the building of their own elaborate Lego-mosaic.

"Adults and kids can pick up a small 8x8 Lego tile. They can stick a bunch of small bricks on it and that will become part of a larger mosaic," Wolf told Patch. "We did that same thing with the Westlake Library this past year. It worked great there."

NEOLUG has been featured at a variety of events across the region in the past 12 months. The group have been featured at the Cuyahoga County Fair and had a summer-length installation at the Great Lakes Science Center.

"This is the busiest year that we've had," Wolf said.

A Short History Of NEOLUG

The NEOLUG group has had two incarnations. The Lego builders were around prior to 2010 but disbanded. Wolf and another man decided to bring the group back together in 2011.

There are now 25 NEOLUG members across Northeast Ohio and into Northwest Pennsylvania. Most of the members are adults with families and children and full-time jobs. They dedicate parts of evenings and weekends to building with Legos.

What they create is incredible. With no guidance besides, as mentioned, a photograph, a NEOLUG builder will construct an incredible look-alike model with nothing but cast-off Star Wars Lego pieces.

Creating one of the NEOLUG models takes time, a whole lot of time. Wolf said the recreation of the William G. Mather took him between two and three months to finish.

To acquire the needed pieces, NEOLUG members wait for sales on various Lego kits. Some use wholesale ordering websites where they can purchase, say, 300 blue bricks to create a wave effect for the Mather scene.

"There are people all over the world that are selling their pieces online," Wolf said.

The result of all that effort, of all that time and searching, will be on display Dec. 3 at the Historical Society. The event starts at 1 p.m. and is free.

Photos from Joe Miller