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FAMILIES, ADULTS & CHILDREN OF ALL AGES: ASSEMBLE THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF CREATIVITY AT THE HEARD THIS SUMMER!
LEGO® bricks, the popular building toy that came to life in February in a major U.S. motion picture release, are the inspiration of a family-friendly, interactive exhibit that runs through September 28th at the Heard Museum in Phoenix.
at the Heard, presented in the museum’s Lincoln Gallery, features local American Indian, Mexican-American and non-Indian artists transforming their artworks using the versatile toy bricks. Named by USA TODAY as one of the “10 Must-See Museum Exhibits This Summer, the exhibit also features two LEGO® brick creations by well-known brick artists Nathan Sawaya and Sean Kenney.
Native artists Steven Yazzie (Navajo) and Autumn Dawn Gomez (Comanche/Taos Pueblo/Navajo) and Mexican-American artist Lalo Cota are creating their first artworks with LEGO® bricks while local LEGO® brick artist Dave Shaddix has transformed Navajo artist Marlowe Katoney’s “Angry Birds” textile into a LEGO® brick mosaic. Also included are works by Cactus Brick, a Tempe-based LEGO® brick-building club.
Interactive activities — from June workshops to July “block parties” to an August building contest — combined with the exhibit’s already-assembled sculptures will bring to both children and adults a close-up demonstration of the bricks’ amazing capabilities of form, color and design.
Admission
As this is a special exhibit, the following adjusted admission rates will be charged to visitors May 24-Sept. 28. These rates include admission to BUILD! plus the rest of the museum: Adults $23, seniors $18.50, students with ID $12.50, children ages 6-12 $12.50, children ages 1-5 and American Indians $5, children younger than 1 and Heard Museum members free.
Those visiting the Heard this summer as part of the following programs and special entry days will still be required to pay a gate fee of $5 per person to visit BUILD!: Blue Star Families, Teacher Appreciation month, Target Summer Sundays, Smithsonian Magazine Museum Day, Culture Pass.
Those who purchase a Heard Museum Family Membership for only $75 will receive free admission to BUILD! all summer.
Other activities
Even more opportunities to BUILD! will be held on these Saturdays this summer. More details will be listed at heard.org/build
:
• Builder “Play” Days: Sept. 6, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. — Watch local LEGO® brick builders “play” with everything from robotics to your not-so-typical bricks.
• Target Free Summer Sundays: July 27, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Free admission (except for $5 per person gate fee to see BUILD! Toy Brick Art at the Heard) and access to a “block” party where visitors can dig right in and create their own toy brick creation with LEGO®bricks! “Block” parties are supported by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Scottsdale League for the ArtsTM.
• Mike Doyle, author of Beautiful LEGO, speaks and signs copies of his book, Saturday, July 26, 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 pm. The recently published Beautiful LEGO is about how the author — who has designed famous logos including one used on the Pepsi-Cola can — creates art with tiny toy bricks. Doyle will sign copies of the book, which will be available for sale at the event. For more information, please call 602-252-8848 or visit heard.org/events. More information about Mike Doyle is at www.michaeldoyle.com.
• LEGO® Brick Architecture Competition: Aug. 2 — What do indigenous dwellings look like LEGO®-fied? See the crazy creations in person. We’ll have more details and information for those wishing to join in soon right here at heard.org/build.
Feature image: Navajo artist Steve Yazzie created this sculpture of a coyote using LEGO® bricks with the help of his young son. Photo by Caesar Chaves/Heard Museum.