A summer LEGO exhibition at Chester Cathedral has inspired hundreds of hands-on visitors to get creative by constructing their own models.
The Bricks in Motion exhibition – which celebrates the weird and wonderful world of transport and is made up of more than 500,000 individual LEGO bricks – has seen LEGO lovers flock to the cathedral.
But it’s not just the exhibits that are proving popular. A large LEGO play pit and two LEGO graffiti walls situated in the cathedral’s Refectory Café have seen a surprising flurry of activity in recent weeks with visitors getting to work on their own creations. Up to 100 LEGO models a day are now being made in the café by adults and children alike and have been included in a makeshift display.
LEGO Project Co-Ordinator, Elizabeth Butterworth, said: “We have been amazed by the response to the LEGO play pit and graffiti wall. There are more and more creations every day and they are so inventive. We’ve seen everything from rockets and boats to towers and flags! The whole thing has grown organically and is an explosion of creativity. We didn’t put out any signs to encourage people to build or anything like that – it just happened on its own – but we are delighted with the results and are sure our visitors are enjoying this surprising added extra!”
Vice Dean of Chester Cathedral, Peter Howell-Jones, said: “We are thrilled with the response to our LEGO extras in the Refectory Café. We are always keen to encourage visitors to engage with the building and the work we do here and this is another way for people to do just that. It’s great to see so much creativity!”
The exhibition will run until 4 September and this is the last time the collection will be on display in the UK for the foreseeable future.
A series of LEGO Make and Take Saturday workshops, lasting an hour and costing £10, will also give children aged 5-10 years the chance to build a sports car and then take part in a speed challenge on a special gravity-defying racetrack. Bookings are now being taken via the Chester Cathedral website for 27 August and 3 September
