The original took 1,325 days to build, and while Lego's recreation of the Burj Khalifa won't take anywhere near that long to complete, the process that went into creating it was anything but straightforward.
With its bundled-tube design, spiralling setbacks and the needle-like spire that tops the structure at almost 830 metres, the world's tallest building was “an obvious choice” to be brought to toy-brick form, says Rok Zgalin Kobe, senior designer of Lego architecture.
The first Lego Burj Khalifa set was released in 2011, just a year after the Dubai tower was officially inaugurated on January 4, 2010.
However, in that year, the toymaker faced several challenges when getting their construction off the ground. The team studied the architectural plans of the Burj Khalifa and – as they do with every project – first worked with what bricks already existed.
“We wanted to do justice to the original structure,” Kobe says. “Not just in form but in concept as well.”
“For example, the Burj Khalifa has a flowery floor plan that spirals as it rises. We followed that in Lego as well, so that we could capture not only the look of the building, but its essence and the architectural idea behind it,” Kobe, who is an architect himself, says.
"It’s not only a copy but is, instead, respectful to the original idea the architects had. And we try to capture as much as possible with the limited scope of the Lego brick.”
The debut Burj Khalifa set marked the first time Lego Architecture looked outside the United States. The designers took a minimalist approach for the first kit, using mostly small, circular pieces to recreate the structure. It was a fun, 208-piece set targeted at collectors and younger builders.
The follow-up, which was released in 2016, was a more detailed model of the landmark. The set featured 333 pieces and, standing at 38 centimetres, was the tallest Lego Architecture model at the time.
The set, which maintained Burj Khalifa's characteristic flower form when viewed from above, also came with a collectible booklet containing information about the design, architecture and history of the building.
The third iteration of the Lego Burj Khalifa was released earlier this year, and though the set is shorter than its predecessor by five centimetres, its translucent, glass-like round pieces make it the most loyal replica of the skyscraper yet.
This new Lego Burj Khalifa is part of a 740-piece set that includes a number of other key structures that make up Dubai's skyline, including Jumeirah Emirates Towers, the Dubai Fountain and Dubai Frame. The kit includes a base with a ‘Dubai’ nameplate and a booklet that includes interesting facts about the city. The set is aimed at adult builders as, according to its product page, “an immersive, peaceful way to relieve stress".
Kobe says that, as with every set, the team scoured Lego's archives to find just the right pieces to make up the skyline.
“Computers wouldn’t be able to design it in such a way because the combination of how you can stack different Lego bricks together is truly endless,” Kobe says.
Kobe gives the example of the Dubai Frame within the Lego Architecture Dubai set, which he says are made of stacked Lego door frames. “There’s a bit of wordplay in there. We created a frame from a frame. It’s an existing element that we painted in a gold lacquer to represent the original.”
In comparison, the Burj Al Arab is made out of pieces used in the Lego Technic line-up.
"It’s always about using existing elements to create something in a new way," says Kobe. "Our Eiffel Tower set, for instance, is made from the mudguards of Lego cars, which creates a nice curve for the tower."
Kobe was tight-lipped about whether we would be seeing more structures from around the UAE or the region in Lego form, but implied that if we did, they would likely be more intricate that previous releases. The Lego Architecture sets have become increasingly more complex and detailed over the years, he says, especially considering how the line-up started.
The first six Lego Architecture sets were released in 2009, and split into the Landmark Series, which included models of four US skyscrapers – Sears Tower and John Hancock Centre in Chicago, the Space Needle in Seattle, and the Empire State Building in New York City – and the Architecture series, which included sets based on two of Frank Lloyd Wright’s masterpieces, namely the Solomon R Guggenheim Museum and Fallingwater.
“The first Empire State model was massive. It was exactly the same shape as this,” Kobe says, holding up the 2019 iteration of the skyscraper during our Zoom interview. “But it was only made with 60 bricks and didn’t play with texture and so forth.
"When we released the New York skyline set [in 2016], the building kept its size but there were about 200 pieces.”
Kobe says that Lego Architecture sets target an older demographic compared to the toymaker’s other offerings, and offer a creative relief from everyday stresses.
“The architect is going to surprise you every year with bolder ideas,” Kobe says. “It’s about providing a boutique experience, it’s not just about stacking bricks. We are going to push the envelope a bit further with what is possible with Lego.”
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, second leg result:
Ajax 2-3 Tottenham
Tottenham advance on away goals rule after tie ends 3-3 on aggregate
Final: June 1, Madrid
THE BIO: Mohammed Ashiq Ali
Proudest achievement: “I came to a new country and started this shop”
Favourite TV programme: the news
Favourite place in Dubai: Al Fahidi. “They started the metro in 2009 and I didn’t take it yet.”
Family: six sons in Dubai and a daughter in Faisalabad
'Top Gun: Maverick'
Rating: 4/5
Directed by: Joseph Kosinski
Starring: Tom Cruise, Val Kilmer, Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, Miles Teller, Glen Powell, Ed Harris
Results
5.30pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (Turf) 1,400m; Winner: Mcmanaman, Sam Hitchcock (jockey), Doug Watson (trainer)
6.05pm: Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (T) 1,400m; Winner: Bawaasil, Sam Hitchcott, Doug Watson
6.40pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (Dirt) 1,400m; Winner: Bochart, Fabrice Veron, Satish Seemar
7.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: Mutaraffa, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi
7.50pm: Longines Stakes – Conditions (TB) Dh120,00 (D) 1,900m; Winner: Rare Ninja, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer
8.25pm: Zabeel Trophy – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh120,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Alfareeq, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi
9pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (T) 2,410m; Winner: Good Tidings, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi
9.35pm: Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (T) 2,000m; Winner: Zorion, Abdul Aziz Al Balushi, Helal Al Alawi
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
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Pakistan Super League
Previous winners
2016 Islamabad United
2017 Peshawar Zalmi
2018 Islamabad United
2019 Quetta Gladiators
Most runs Kamran Akmal – 1,286
Most wickets Wahab Riaz –65
WHAT IS GRAPHENE?
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were experimenting with sticky tape and graphite, the material used as lead in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But when they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.
What is graphene?
Graphene is a single layer of carbon atoms arranged like honeycomb.
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were "playing about" with sticky tape and graphite - the material used as "lead" in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But as they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment had led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
At the time, many believed it was impossible for such thin crystalline materials to be stable. But examined under a microscope, the material remained stable, and when tested was found to have incredible properties.
It is many times times stronger than steel, yet incredibly lightweight and flexible. It is electrically and thermally conductive but also transparent. The world's first 2D material, it is one million times thinner than the diameter of a single human hair.
But the 'sticky tape' method would not work on an industrial scale. Since then, scientists have been working on manufacturing graphene, to make use of its incredible properties.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics. Their discovery meant physicists could study a new class of two-dimensional materials with unique properties.
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Company Profile
Company name: Big Farm Brothers
Started: September 2020
Founders: Vishal Mahajan and Navneet Kaur
Based: Dubai Investment Park 1
Industry: food and agriculture
Initial investment: $205,000
Current staff: eight to 10
Future plan: to expand to other GCC markets
THE BIO: Martin Van Almsick
Hometown: Cologne, Germany
Family: Wife Hanan Ahmed and their three children, Marrah (23), Tibijan (19), Amon (13)
Favourite dessert: Umm Ali with dark camel milk chocolate flakes
Favourite hobby: Football
Breakfast routine: a tall glass of camel milk
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Results
- Brock Lesnar retained the WWE Universal title against Roman Reigns
- Braun Strowman and Nicolas won the Raw Tag Team titles against Sheamus and Cesaro
- AJ Styles retained the WWE World Heavyweight title against Shinsuke Nakamura
- Nia Jax won the Raw Women’s title against Alexa Bliss
- Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon beat Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn
- The Undertaker beat John Cena
- The Bludgeon Brothers won the SmackDown Tag Team titles against the Usos and New Day
- Ronda Rousey and Kurt Angle beat Triple H and Stephanie McMahon
- Jinder Mahal won the United States title against Randy Orton, Rusev and Bobby Roode
- Charlotte retained the SmackDown Women’s title against Asuka
- Seth Rollins won the Intercontinental title against The Miz and Finn Balor
- Naomi won the first WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal
- Cedric Alexander won the vacant Cruiserweight title against Mustafa Ali
- Matt Hardy won the Andre the Giant Battle Royal
