REIMAGINE VINCENT VAN GOGH’S ICONIC PAINTING WITH THE NEW LEGO IDEAS STARRY NIGHT SET

lifestyle image of the starry night built hanging on a wall

17th May, 2022: In tribute to Vincent van Gogh’s famous painting, the LEGO Group has revealed the LEGO® Ideas The Starry Night set. This beautiful set was designed by Truman Cheng, a 25-year old Hong Kong based LEGO fan, through a submission on the LEGO Ideas platform, and has been created in conjunction with The Museum of Modern Art in New York.

The three-dimensional set reimagines Vincent van Gogh’s renowned 1889 painting in LEGO form, with strong emphasis on the artist’s striking brush strokes and colour choice. Inspired by the view from his window at the Monastery of Saint-Paul de Mausole asylum in Saint-Rémy, France, where the artist spent twelve months, The Starry Night is one of the world’s most well-known post-impressionist works and has been a visitor favourite at MoMA since it first arrived in 1935.

Art lovers can swap paint palettes for LEGO bricks and re-create one of the world’s most recognisable masterpieces. From the twinkling stars and mesmerising moon to the sleeping Provence village below, van Gogh’s image has been brought spectacularly to life in brick, capturing the artist’s swirling brushstrokes.

To celebrate and inspire creativity, the LEGO Group has also launched a competition encouraging fans to submit their own mini LEGO builds inspired by the night’s sky. Winning designs will form part of an installation displayed in the lobby at the Museum of Modern Art this summer. Participants in Spain, UK, Germany, France, Canada, Mexico and Poland can enter by simply visiting www.LEGO.com/Starry-Night or selected LEGO stores.

lifestyle image of women building the new lego ideas the starry night set

Honouring the celebrated artist, the set also includes a van Gogh minifigure, complete with a paint brush, palette, easel and mini painting on a printed tile, which can even be attached via an arm to show him painting the scene. The intricate set can be displayed standing or on the wall, thanks to the hanging feature.

When developing the original concept, Truman Cheng, a PhD student and LEGO fan, was just playing with LEGO bricks when he realised that stacking them together in random intervals looked a like van Gogh’s iconic brush strokes. “It was a was a good brain tease to come up with tricks and techniques to capture the look of the original painting,” Cheng said, talking about his design “The brushwork goes into many directions in the moon and the swirling cloud, so there was some creative use of bracket and clip elements involved.”

At the LEGO Group, we want to inspire the world to get creative, so we’re incredibly proud to have brought this set to life in partnership with such an iconic institution as MoMA, allowing fans to be artistic with bricks, and to create and display their own masterpiece.”

“At MoMA, we celebrate the opportunity to connect art and audiences, and are thrilled to be part of a new way to experience van Gogh’s work, and to inspire the creative impulse in people of all ages,” said Sarah Suzuki, Associate Director, The Museum of Modern Art.

The set will go on sale on 25th May exclusively for LEGO VIP’s (www.lego.com/VIP) and MoMA members (https://membership.moma.org/) and then will be available globally from 01st June for £149.99 / €169.99 / $169.99 on www.Lego.com/starry-night, in LEGO stores and with MoMA Design Store in New York City and online at store.moma.org.

Notes to Editors

FURTHER PRODUCT INFO: LEGO® IDEAS STARRY NIGHT SET (SKU: 21333)

  • Age – 18+
  • The model measures:
    o L: 38 cm
    o W: 21 cm
    o H: 28 cm
  • 2,316 pieces
  • Price: £149.99 / €169.99 / $169.99

LEGO® STARRY NIGHT SET competition information

  • The LEGO Group is hosting building activities in some LEGO stores, and on Lego.com/Starry-Night – allowing fans to create their own version of a night sky.
  • Designs could inspire an installation in the lobby at the Museum of Modern Art in New York!
  • Entries open until 30th June 2022
  • Open for participants aged 18 and over and a permanent resident in Spain, UK, Germany, France, Poland, USA, Canada and Mexico
  • Full details and terms can be found at www.lego.com/starry-night

About the LEGO Group
The LEGO Group’s mission is to inspire and develop the builders of tomorrow through the power of play. The LEGO System in Play, with its foundation in LEGO bricks, allows children and fans to build and rebuild anything they can imagine.
The LEGO Group was founded in Billund, Denmark in 1932 by Ole Kirk Kristiansen, its name derived from the two Danish words LEg GOdt, which mean “Play Well”. Today, the LEGO Group remains a family-owned company headquartered in Billund. However, its products are now sold in more than 130 countries worldwide.
For more news from the LEGO Group, information about our financial performance and responsibility engagement, please visit www.LEGO.com/aboutus.

About the LEGO Ideas platform
LEGO® Ideas offers fans the opportunity to submit their own brick creations with the chance to have their concept brought to life with the help of LEGO master designers and a share of the profits. Find out more at https://ideas.lego.com.

About The Museum of Modern Art
Founded in 1929 by three progressive women under an educational charter, The Museum of Modern Art is dedicated to being the foremost museum of modern and contemporary art in the world. MoMA manifests this commitment by establishing, preserving, and documenting a dynamic collection of the highest order that reflects the vitality, complexity and unfolding patterns of modern and contemporary art; by presenting exhibitions and educational programs of unparalleled significance; by sustaining a library, archives, and conservation laboratory that are recognized as international centers of research; and by supporting scholarship and publications of preeminent intellectual merit. Central to MoMA’s mission is the encouragement of an ever-deeper understanding and enjoyment of modern and contemporary art by the diverse local, national, and international audiences that it serves.