Building van Gogh Brick by Brick

Van Gogh's The Starry Night in Lego form by Truman Cheng

One of the latest products to come from Lego is a reproduction of Vincent van Gogh's The Starry Night -- in the colourful bricks.

The swirl of the clouds in blues, grey and yellow is cleverly recreated using straight, thin bricks, but perhaps what's so fascinating about it is that the piece is its three-dimensional look.

Even better? It was designed by a Hongkonger.

Cheng likes van Gogh's paintings

Twenty-six-year-old Truman Cheng is a PhD student studying medical robotics and magnetic controlled surgical endoscopes.

During his free time however, he loves playing with Lego, something he's done since he was a child.

"To me, Lego is more than 'toys', it's something similar to painting," he said in an interview with Lego. "I can express myself, create characters and sculptures from my imagination. It's a very relaxing experience where I can forget about the petty troubles in daily lives, and get lost in my own imagination."

He later explained that he's always loved van Gogh's work and that The Starry Night is such a well known piece. 

"I had wanted to make a Lego creation based on the artwork for a long time but never thought of a good execution-style for it.

"One day I was just playing with Lego parts, and I realised stacking Lego plates together in random intervals look a lot like van Gogh's iconic brush strokes!

A figurine of the artist himself

"I couldn't help but wonder what the full painting would look like with this build style. I kept building and modifying, and eventually created the model you see in the project."

There are over 1,500 pieces for this particular Lego set and the company teamed up with the Museum of Modern Art -- which houses the original art work -- to produce the set, which retails for US$159.99.

One wonders what royalties Cheng will get!

But in the meantime it just shows how playing can get those creative juices going!