31st May 2017: LEGO House Tour
LEGO House
In the heart of Billund lies LEGO House, a place for LEGO Fans and families to experience the playfulness of LEGO. The LEGO House is due to open on the 28th September 2017. It will include paid attractions as well as an area open to the general public, including eateries and a LEGO Shop.
The LEGO House consists of four individually coloured experience zones with a Masterpiece Gallery featuring fan made creations, the History Collection in the basement which illustrates the development of the company and LEGO brand over time.
Image: LEGO® House: seen from above
Presentations
Representatives across five continents attended and gave short 5-10 minute presentations about a variety of LEGO fan communities.
CEO Session
We were also given a chance to have a group interview with the current LEGO CEO Bali Padda about a broad range of topics.
One of the topics I found most interesting was the commitment by The LEGO Group to conduct research into developing fully sustainable plastic, a goal (set by the previous CEO Jørgen Vig Knudstorp) which they aim to achieve by 2030.
LEGO House Masterpiece Gallery Reveal
The LEGO House General Manager Jesper Vilstrup and Senior Experience Designer Stuart Harris gave a presentation revealing the first models to feature in the Masterpiece Gallery.
Three towering dinosaurs, each representing the core build styles of System, Duplo and Technic will feature in the centre of the gallery at the highest point inside the building.
Tree of Creativity
One of the largest (6 million bricks) and tallest (15m high) LEGO models ever built. It is surrounded by a staircase that winds its way around the tree, up to the top floor.
As you climb the stairs, it becomes apparent that the tree is inhabited by small colonies of minifigures representing most of the major LEGO themes.
World Explorer
The three islands included in this area include: a towering city island, town & countryside island and a paradise fairground island.
All of the models are packed full of exciting details and the whole collection of models feels alive.
These islands have some of the most spectacular light setups I have seen, almost every building and many vehicles have lighting incorporated into them.
Flickr: Recognised LEGO Fan Media Days 2017 (Day 1 - LEGO House Tour)