Best of BrickNerd - Article originally published March 22, 2021.
Throughout the past year, AFOLs around the world have been prevented from getting together physically and sharing the thing they love most. In my opinion, LEGO is best viewed and experienced up close and in person—and though virtual cons and meetups have filled the gap, nothing comes close to seeing a LEGO model’s minute details. It’s hard to convey the time, effort, size and even emotion that goes into a MOC through a few photos on a computer or phone screen.
Some of the small details I miss seeing are from models made by the amazing Paul Hetherington. If you ever come across his work at a convention (which I’m sure a lot of you have) then you know his models can captivate and memorize you. I remember seeing his Tiki Madness MOC at Bricks Cascade last February and just standing there and watching it and those spiraling eyes for what seemed like hours.
Within the last year, Paul has turned from prolific LEGO builder to full-time LEGO artist. He (like all LEGO artists I suspect) had a difficult time last year as shows and conventions came to a sudden stop. I sat down with him to talk about his latest MOCs and his journey to stay active and working in these times.
Keith: Thanks for chatting with us! Diving right in, one of two of your newest MOCs, Scooby-Doo, is done in the same style as your previous Tin Tin and Batman models. Can you elaborate on why enjoying such huge models in a comic or movie poster style?
Paul: Yes, this style is essentially a three-dimensional poster created with LEGO that has been popular in several of my earlier creations. The Scooby-Doo scene with the ghost hovering over the mystery mansion is something I dreamed up. I like the idea of trying to immerse the viewer in the scene I’ve created. Online when you present your model you can achieve this effect by editing the background in a photo editing program.
Keith: Does knowing how a model is going to be viewed affect the way that you build?
Paul: My models are designed to be viewed in person from many different angles in a gallery setting. I like to frame the scene and I have found that the added height from the background attracts people’s attention. It also allows me to incorporate the logo of the subject I’m building as well as creating a themed base to highlight it. The Scooby-Doo creation was particularly fun to design. I love architecture and getting to build an old Victorian mansion was something I have wanted to do for a long time.
Keith: Your Doctor Who model includes many familiar main characters, a few larger than life! Could go into a little detail about why you choose to do a display of Doctor Who? I see it’s also in a comic book cover-style layout.
Paul: I have been a long-time fan of the iconic Doctor Who characters. While the Doctor is constantly changing form, the Daleks, Cyberman, Weeping Angels, and TARDIS remain pretty much the same. Having said that I did a fair amount of research to pick the versions of these characters that would match the doctor that I chose. I had considered several different Doctors before settling on the twelfth. This was mainly because the characters already existed in minifigure form thanks to the great LEGO Ideas Doctor Who set.
The concept was something I came up with after considering if it was possible to show both the inside and the outside of the Tardis in one creation. The Doctor Who Ideas set did this quite successfully and I thought I could take this concept in a new direction by showing the TARDIS careening out of the time travel console with the Weeping Angel and Cyberman in hot pursuit.
I used the Daleks to frame the scene. I found the round Dalek bumps mirrored the rondels inside the Console Room nicely. This shows that Dalek and TARDIS technology are not entirely dissimilar. I really enjoyed creating the Daleks and have made them as a stand-alone creation that I have for sale on my website along with the Console Room and the Cyberman.
Keith: How is being a full-time LEGO artist these days? What adjustments did you find yourself making now that we can’t be in person for conventions? I know shows like BrickUniverse took a large time commitment.
Paul: It has been interesting with the world basically shutting down for conventions and travel. I had many great plans with BrickUniverse before the restrictions so am looking forward to resuming where I left off once it is possible to do so. Like everyone, I miss the in-person interactions at the shows.
In the meantime, I have been doing some commissions which people can request through my website. The Buffalo Phil’s commission is actually what jumpstarted me into doing this full time. In the summer of 2019, I built a giant LEGO city for Buffalo Phil’s restaurant in the city of Wisconsin Dells. I also selling versions of my previous creations or people can request something new too.
Keith: Have you expanded beyond the basic portals of Facebook Flickr, or Instagram to show your work?
Paul: I have been moving into new platforms online to promote my work by posting content on TikTok, Twitter, and YouTube. TikTok in particular is seeing amazing growth. I continue to use Instagram, Facebook, and Flickr, but it seems that there is now no one definitive place to share your LEGO creations. The last year has seen my online profile grow and we are going to continue in that direction. I have also opened an Etsy store and have several models for sale there as well as on Ebay.
Keith: What is the effort that goes into creating a website and designing MOCs to sell?
Paul: Yes, it has long been a goal of mine to have a website so people can find all of my creations and information in one location. One of the few benefits of the pandemic has been more time to focus on things that we didn’t have time to do when we were traveling to so many conventions. My girlfriend, Melissa, did a great job of creating the website and I had fun going through all my pictures from the past 10-20 years to fill it with interesting content. Part of that was having a store to sell custom sets and creations along with some new items such as T-shirts that we will launch soon.
When it came to designing the website we had to learn how to navigate the site and had to put lots of thought into the layout and how we wanted the site to look. It will always be a work in progress. There were some challenges along the way with making the layout work on both a PC and a mobile device. I am happy with the way it turned out and look forward to creating more content in the future for the blog page as well as updating the photo gallery which highlights many of the amazing people I have met at LEGO events over the past 20 years.
Keith: How do you collect all the pieces for the models you sell, and how do you ship such large models?
Paul: Creating MOCs to sell does involve an extra element of design especially for the larger ones. The MOCs are designed in sections that can be wrapped up and shipped separately if needed. The purchaser then receives the sections and directions on how to assemble them. As for part availability, I make an effort to stick with more common elements but I have a habit of including rare and desirable parts as well. It is part of the fun for me as the designer and hopefully for the collectors out there too.
Keith: With nearly 20 years of photos, I can only imagine the people you have met. What has been one of your favorite recent memories?
Paul: 2019 was a busy year as I was also invited to display in the LEGO House Masterpiece Gallery in Billund, Denmark. I created a new colorful model called “We Built This City” to showcase there. That week was one of the highlights of my life! It was an incredible experience, I met so many amazing people and was able to attend the Skaerbaek Fan Weekend as well.
Keith: I hope we can get back to all those wonderful events soon. Thanks for your time!
One last note, Paul shared that with only online LEGO conventions the past year, it’s not all bad though. It gave him the opportunity to attend many of the worldwide conventions virtually, including appearances on Boone Builds YouTube channel, LEGO House presentations from Denmark, and tours of his LEGO studio for BrickCan and Bricks at Home in the UK.
No matter whether LEGO conventions remain virtual or we get back to gathering in person, I am excited to see what Paul builds next. Though if you want to feel nostalgic for past LEGO events, I encourage you to scroll through Paul’s photo gallery of friends from conventions. You might see a familiar face or two.
What comic book cover do you think would translate well into a LEGO model? Do you miss LEGO conventions? Let us know in the comments below.
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