Gifting Gugicks: The Origin of the Brickworld Master Tradition

Today I’m going to dive into “Gugicks.”

Arthur Gugick Source: Flickr

What’s a “Gugick” you might ask? It’s simply a token of appreciation, a little LEGO mini-build given out at a fan convention. Tokens are often mislabelled as a Gugick. However, the genuine Gugick is actually a very specific token made by a very specific individual at a very specific convention.

Why do I know this? Because I started it—sort of.

This is why the BrickNerd editors have been encouraging me to write about this topic and tomorrow’s article on the non-Gugick tokens of appreciation. Why the name difference? What makes a Gugick special? What are the rules behind Gugick tokens? Let’s begin.

Deep Dish Dive

While nice that it’s somewhat common in parts of the US to call LEGO tokens of appreciation “Gugicks,” there is technically only one Gugick given out a year—and only at Brickworld Chicago. And this is less because of where but because of who. Why is this? Because Gugicks are the specific brick-built token given out to builders by the previous year’s Brickworld Master.

“‘Brickworld Master is awarded to an individual that represents builder excellence, acknowledging their enduring contributions and community impact. This award honors an ongoing commitment to excellence and showcases the best of Brickworld. It recognizes exemplary artistic and creative skill combined with community dedication, highlighting the profound influence of the recipient's contributions to the LEGO community.” - Brickworld

Arthur Gugick - Mosaic? or Cape

For those familiar with BrickCan, the Brickworld Master title is almost like a rotating B Boys title, where the Master gives out a themed token every year for fun.

If you’ve read Casey McCoy’s exposé on me, you’ll know it all started at Brickworld Chicago: my very first major convention. I somehow managed to win Brickworld Master, despite just getting started with this whole LEGO thing. As it was my very first major convention, I didn’t have any of the history of what was the “right” or “wrong” way to do things; I was malleable by others that might have said I should do X or do Y, and I was young and naïve enough to believe it. 

Enter Arthur Gugick 

Arthur’s wonderful mosaics had won him the title of Brickworld Master the previous year. He was a bit of a mischievous fellow and it was noticed that he was “trolling” and playfully teasing builders by putting out hundreds of scorpions around many, many people’s displays—sometimes even building little moustaches on peoples display during the notoriously fun World of Lights and subsequent party.

Some of Arthur’s scorpions next to one of my displays

This is where multi-verse Simon, who might have gone to other conventions before Chicago, would realize you should NEVER modify or play with anyone’s display that you do not know well or have permission to touch. But at that point, I hadn’t and didn’t know better. So monkey see, monkey do better. That said, I’m glad I now know so many people well to the point I’m willing to risk their wrath by adding something to their displays…

Rule #1: Gugicks are the only thing allowed ON other people’s displays

It wasn’t until I was doing subsequent research, mostly while writing this article, that I found pictures of the infamous mustache build:

My keen eyes spotted that the owner of the mosaic wasn’t Ej Bacon or Roy Cook, Arthur’s Art/Moasic arch nemesis at the time, but The Birth of Venus mosaic that was built by none other than Arthur himself! Upon finding this fact and some head scratching, further sleuthing around revealed that apparently Arthur had put maybe TOO many Scorpions in various people’s displays. And apparently some people got tired of Scorpions spawning on their displays and they returned them to him in the most Arthur way possible.

If I had known that tidbit all those years ago, I probably would have changed a few things…. sorry Rule #1.

Simon Says

Since I didn’t know the above facts, I took Arthur’s lead and followed in his mischievousness. I plotted to one-up him the next year, not by simply placing another small LEGO animal part on MOCs, but placing a little build… The chosen animal to be the spiritual successor to Arthur’s Scorpion was the Frog. That’s honestly all I could afford back in the day. (I talked a bit more about the hunt for the perfect animal in my previous Frog article).

My Frogpod on Jermey’s build, my BW Master Successor

All the effort was really less about outdoing Arthur and more about just doing something nice and fun thing for this new family I just found that not only accepted me, but gave me a big award that said I was awesome. And even though I was pretty sure it was not tradition for Brickworld Masters to do anything, no one can blame me if I didn’t know better and continued the tradition of messing with people’s displays on a widespread level.

The one thing that was absolutely critical about how I wanted to do MY thing was that everyone got it. It was fairly clear that Arthur targeted people he knew semi-well and, of course, was respectful of strangers. I was not.

Rule #2: Everyone who displayed, big or small, gets one

Figuring out how many I needed was a fun game in of itself—how do you even plan something like this out? I couldn’t straight up ask the organizers, lest tip my hand at my plans and risk being corrected that I shouldn’t do this… So I guesstimated—II think attendance was maybe 800 builders at the time. So 500 would be enough for sure, right?

Oh classic Simon—yeah…. I overestimated by quite a bit. I gave out roughly 300 of the 500 and by most accounts was extremely generous with doubles or more. I didn’t take a lot of pictures back then, but here are some of the favorites I could find on the net:

Rule #3: Not everyone likes their build being invaded

That’s fine and not unexpected, which is why Rule #1 exists. We know who to blame and most people are now very used to it and look forward to it, but at the time… maybe less so. Some were polite and repositioned our tokens and some put them in a neat pile.

That’s fine, and that goes with the current feeling on other gifted tokens too (more on that tomorrow). Many people spend a whole year or more creating their vision, and wouldn’t want a lame little Frog in a spaceship to steal the show… Because that’s what accidentally happened.

While a lot of the piece choices were reasonably price restricted, some were mainly guided by the “rule of cool”—the selection of the Yellow Frog vs Green Frog was an example of this. I thought yellow would be cooler and less common. But what ended happening was a very bright little Frog that was in a tiny spaceship was suddenly all over the hall. And whilst I never planned it that way, it soon became a side quest for a bunch of kids who quickly realized that almost every single build had this one hidden Frog Waldo and went around the room trying to find them all.

Bryan Bonahom, the head of Brickworld at the time, was decisive. Instead of getting slapped for my tomfoolery, we were applauded. The annual tradition of “pimping” of MOC displays by the previous Brickworld Master was born. (I must apologize to every single Brickworld Master after me that has gone through this nonsense. But admit it, it is kinda fun…. right?)

What’s In a Name?

Arthur Gugick - 1960-2019

But what about the name? Originally there wasn’t a name for these things. Bryan called the act of placing them out “pimping” based on the “Pimp my Ride” show. I personally used to like to call them Horcuxes of Harry Potter fame, basically giving out a bit of my soul to everyone so I can’t be killed.

Which sadly proved to be false… In 2019, shortly before Brickworld Chicago, Arthur passed away in an automobile accident.

As a long time Brickworld attendee, Brickworld Master, and the original prankster himself, it was obvious that his legacy would be cemented and the tokens given out by the Brickworld Master would be officially named in his honor. 

The Legacy - Why We Build Them

What started out as a bit of fun has definitely turned into a serious business and honorific for those involved. I asked two Brickworld Masters, Nick Jensen (2017) and Casey McCoy (2023… and the most recent Brickworld Master to partake in the tradition) about what Gugicks mean to them. 

Nick, Casey and Simon

Nick Jensen:

“Gugicks feel like a way for the Brickworld Master to carry a tradition differentiating it from any other LEGO fan event, and to share gratitude for a community that supported them and voted for them in their contributions to Brickworld and their own body of work. I look forward to how creative Masters will get with their Gugicks. For example, I figured Rocco Buttliere would make a microscale Chicago landmark, but which one? As for Amanda Feuk, could her work translate to a part and size limit? As we at Brickworld have seen, yes. Yes it can.”

Casey McCoy:

“Gugicks are all about continuing the spirit of creativity, charity, and gratitude which is at the heart of the close-knit Brickworld community (also with a tad of fun trolling sprinkled in). It’s also about the returning Brickworld Master getting the opportunity to make their mark and cement their legacy. Saying “I was here” and doing it in a signature, innovative, and surprising style that will be remembered for years to come.

I still remember going to Arthur's advanced mosaic class during one of my first Brickworlds at the Westin, so it's a huge honor and privilege to continue in this tradition and add my little piece to Brickworld and LEGO fan history.”

But What to Build?

Poor Daniel Church, the winner of the 2024 Brickworld Master title (and a BrickNerd Patron) is currently facing this dilemma—how do you make a build that is probably going to be an iconic piece of yourself (…hopefully this article helps, buddy)?

Daniel talking about gugicks and secret handshakes?

Again I asked my Brickworld Master brothers what makes a good Gugick? 

Casey McCoy got straight to the point:

“You can recognize the builder instantly.

You understand the build without any context.

There’s some component of NPU or a “wow” factor.”

Nick Jensen goes in deep:

“Although I don’t consider Gugicks and tokens to be the same thing, they share one common goal to me: be unmistakably you. 

I’m inspired by the video games I play, so I chose to take it back to my roots. My first video game system was the Super Nintendo, playing games like Super Mario World, Super Metroid, Super Star Wars, and Starfox. Early on, I decided my Gugick would be a Super Nintendo controller.”

Last Minute Panic - 2024

I was blessed and unfortunately called up to serve Mr. McCoy this year for his Gugick making, and while he might not have out right said it, it was a last minute panic. Back in my day, I only had to give out 300, and mine were small by comparison. Casey’s was not small, and he had to make 750 of these beautiful creations. Yes, the mAster has to build all the Gugicks rather than giving away a kit or instructions.

Over the years, there has been some level of trying to beat the previous Brickworld Master in terms of complexity, fun features, or even just awesomeness. Where I never discussed much with Arthur, I did talk to Jeremy Moody, who won after me. And I believe there’s a bit of tradition of the reigning Brickworld Master having a little heart-to-heart with the incoming Brickworld Master.

Happy casey it’s almost done, less happy helpers that we weren’t already done at 7:40pm Monday

In 2024, it was Casey’s turn to do this tradition, and it was all hands on deck to help my buddy out, which proved to be quite accurate. This is Casey’s Google rating of my help:

"In order to keep the Gugick knowledge limited to only three AFOLs on earth (Simon, Markus Rollbühler, and myself) for maximum surprise factor, it was imperative to employ as little outside help as possible. Which in turn meant Simon was a powerhouse—the effective mitochondria of the operation. I absolutely could not have done it without him, especially given the time crunch we were under with the proximity of the parts arriving and the actual convention. His parts per minute (ppm) is unparalleled. 11/10 would use as manual labour again."

Thankfully, Brickworld now sponsors the Brickworld Masters with their Gugicking, providing a project support type request to procure parts that hopefully cover most, if not all, of the models.

Casey, in his big heartedness, went all out and included a non-LEGO part (a Lenticular sticker that would mimic his brickfilm origins) and several other rare parts that aren’t currently available to order. These all worked without a problem except for the logistics of last-minute ordering. 

Lastest of Minutes

How last minute? I picked up several boxes of LEGO pieces on my way to Casey’s house Saturday before Brickworld. We had three, maybe four days to put together 750 Gugicks before showing up to the con. Impossible? Maybe, but we made it happen.

I think i’m sick of stickers

We started on Saturday night with testing and applying the Lenticular stickers but paused when Nick Jensen stopped by to work on the Smash Bro Collab, keeping the Guigicks top secret.

Sunday after their church—and praying that we were able to get our builds done—a very optimistic Casey got his mom, his brother, and his brother’s friends (and I kid you not, named Simon… and another Simon) to help with the mass production. Initial estimate was that we could finish in 10ish hours… but we were somewhat short.

But fear not. I continued to slave away on Monday and kept cranking out subassemblies. With 750 Gugicks to be made, we realized building them one at a time was inefficient, so all of them were built in small assemblies and then put together. 

The chairs are done! 9:25 pm Sunday

In the end, Casey’s mom and brother (not named Simon) popped by after dinner, and we finished the final assembly around 9 pm Monday night. We were treated to some nice fresh-baked cookies as a reward.

As much physical pain as it was to help assemble all these builds, 748 to be exact, I’m honestly so happy to have been able to be a part of Casey’s journey. It did feel quite appropriate that I helped him get out of this particular jam he found himself in, given that this was sort of all my fault. 

And if you were curious, the two worst bits were the chair assembly and sticking and aligning those Lenticular stickers. Fun fact: I, as the sticker guy [see GARCs], put on 748 lenticular stickers. The first and only lenticular sticker I didn’t apply was the prototype test build that Casey did… which I stole.

And we are done!

Nick had a bit of an easier time with his year than Casey, and quoting Nick:

“Only three other people knew what my Gugick was before Brickworld 2018: former coordinator Bryan Bonahoom and my two college roommates that semester, Alec and Charles. The three of us built all the Gugicks by May 2018. No last-minute panic building here!

One of the funniest interactions came from retrieving a BrickLink order for this project. I went downstairs to my residence hall’s front desk to pick up my mail. At this point, all the RAs in this hall knew me as the LEGO guy. As he handed me the package, my friend Taylor asked, ‘What’s in the package? More LEGO?’

‘Whips,’ I replied matter of factly.

He was flustered. I opened the package and dumped out hundreds of black LEGO whips. ‘Oh. It really was whips.’ These whips were the cables on my mini Super Nintendo controller!”

The Grand Reveal

Brickworld Master Santa - 2024

So now that we had Casey’s Guigkcs built, stacked and prepped with care, we got to enjoy Brickworld!

As per tradition (originally mainly out of secrecy), the Gugicks are always handed out Saturday Night/Sunday Morning before everyone gets up. So with everyone snug in their beds, kinda like waiting for Christmas, Brickworld Santa Claus soon would be there and drop off a little present in their displays. 

And while my year it was a fairly simple task (the hall was only maybe one third its current size), I had helpers distribute it in rapid, ninja-type fashion. But now with upwards of 650 displayers in more than a 100,000 square foot hall, it was quite the exercise, literally, with the steps to prove it.

Note the 12-5am walking pace

Each Brickworld Master distributes their Gugicks slightly differently. Some like to spread the task out to many people, aka the “I Want To Go To BED” route. Some are cheekier with their placements, some treat it as a roving party, and others are meticulous. For Casey it was combination of the last two with playlists in hand (Casey is our resident New Hashima music playlist composer). Me, Casey, Casey’s sister, Evan, and Evan, went off on our way, soon joined by Jens and Christie. 

Surprisingly we didn’t take many pictures of fun placements. Feel free to drop a link to some in the comments if you took some good pictures! We were pretty focused and took about five hours to systematically go through every table, every MOC card, and do our best to try to make sure we got proper distribution of Gugicks.

final briefing from to the distribution crew - all three boxes full to the brim of gugicks

The Legacy Continues

It’s been over ten Brickworlds since Arthur Gugick’s scorpion invasion, and I look back at all the amazing builds that have been created over the years because of it. An entire article could be written diving into the Brickworld Master builders over the years. But while the builds in recent years are clearly heads and shoulders above what I made (and at what point are these more than tokens and simply gifts?), I do reminisce about a time when there was a bit more mischievous pimping fun. 

Amanda’s amazing shadow guigick

But what I can’t get over is still, after all this time, is how much time and effort each Brickworld Master and their team(s) put in to continuing this tradition and to honor the memory of Arthur Gugick. 

His love of the community and every single Brickworld’s Master devotion are what make Brickworld Chicago a special convention to so many people. 

Arisa Kirkpat’s collection Guigicks of every Guigick

What Makes a Token?

Now you might be all pumped up from reading this article to start making your own LEGO tokens of appreciation. Where do you start and what do you do? Well fret not—come back tomorrow when I will take you down the Token trail.

Which was your favorite Gugick? Did you get a fun placement in your build? Tell us in the comments below!

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