Satu Aaltonen, a Lego enthusiast from the west coast Finnish city of Vaasa, has been invited to display her latest creation at the Masterpiece Gallery exhibition in Denmark.
The gallery invites 15-17 contributors every year to showcase their brick-built masterpieces at the venue in Billund, the city where Lego’s founder Ole Kirk Kristiansen started his toy-making business in 1932.
Aaltonen is only the second Finn in history — and the first Finnish woman — to receive an invitation to the exhibition, which “celebrates creativity and shows that the possibilities with Lego bricks are endless when you use your imagination”, according to the company’s website.
Aaltonen’s creation is a wearable wedding dress, called the Bride of the Frozen Crown, and it was built from thousands of Lego bricks.
“I wanted to create something out of Lego that has not been seen before. For me, building is both art and play, but also a meditative counterbalance to my everyday computer work,” Aaltonen told Yle.
The dress is fully wearable and Aaltonen did not use any glue when building it.
“When moving in the dress, it makes a sound like walking on ice. The Lego pieces rattle against each other,” she said.
The dress is designed so that one side can be opened and closed, but Aaltonen admitted that she wouldn’t dare to sit down while wearing it.
“But you only need to walk to the altar and dance a little at the wedding party,” she said with a smile.
Eero Okkonen is the only other Finn to have been invited to display their works at the Masterpiece Gallery. Okkonen is also chair of the Finnish Lego enthusiasts’ association Palikkatakomo, and he considers Aaltonen’s invitation to be a significant recognition of her creativity.
“It’s one of the greatest honors you can receive for your hobby. Over the course of its history, only about a hundred enthusiasts have been invited to the exhibition in Denmark,” he said.
The dress going on display in Billund is one of a series of six that Aaltonen is currently building.
“The greatest compliment is when people are surprised to discover that the dresses are made of Lego bricks. I want to inspire wonder in viewers and show that creativity has no limits,” Aaltonen said.
