When you say the words ‘Modular Buildings‘ one brand instantly comes to mind, but there is one other making massive waves in the market, LumiBricks!
In the relatively short time they’ve been around, then alternative brick brand has an impressive range of sets, most importantly their Modular Buildings. Spanning a few themes, Town Life, Road Trip and Street Fusion, the highly detailed buildings are perfect additions to fans displays and of course Cityscapes. I have quite the collection thanks to our affiliate partnership with LumiBricks, most of them are proudly sat in Gregsville (my City).
Today’s review is for their latest addition to the Town Life lineup, the LumiBricks. It’s massive, it’s detailed, it lights up, and it’s available now – with 10% off your order you can’t go wrong, use THEBRICKPOST during checkout at LumiBricks.com.
The Box & Contents:
The box is of premium feel and look, the artwork is bright, clear and shows the fibwl build off well. The back of LumiBricks boxes has always been lacking in my opinion, with the set in a lineup of others and that’s all. Like other brands they could include shots of interiors or play features and alike.
Inside the box are 17 numbered bags, 3 very thick instruction manuals, plates and the now iconic bright orange box which contains the lights and cables. With past modular building sets there have been a consistent 11 numbered bags. This one however, being 3,400 pieces, has 17 bags and 2 F bags, making it a very big boy indeed, and I love it!
The Build:
Starting off this mammoth build, you are somewhat overwhelmed, not because of the parts in each bag but more “how on earth will I make this 3,400 piece set?!“. Tackle it like any other set, bag-by-bag, piece-By-Piece and you’ll get through it, enjoying every step along the way, I know I did.
As always the base on which it all sits is the first bag and first full constructed area. I love how modular buildings come together, seeing the baseplates being played with tiles, the bare studs left exposed for future side builds and the general shape & shape of the plate gives away just how big this thing is. 6 16×16 grey plates are used to keep it sturdy, along with the many tiles and bricks, the whole thing is solid.
Once the foundations have been laid you move swiftly onto building the Art Gallery and the ground floor. The double doors are first on the list and work really well, looking grandeur with glass and gold trim. Using a couple of hinges to achieve the opening door, standard practice but used here well and hidden away too just behind the pillars either side.
Two of the first lights are added here also, the cables are hidden along the top and covered safely by tiles and specialist bricks. Either side of the doors are two angled lights that point slightly inwards to highlight the entrance. As always when it comes to installing cables and LEDs, don’t worry and take your time, it’s better to take it slower than to cause damage. If you do snag a cable or there’s loose wiring then please reach out to LumiBricks‘ customer service, they are very friendly and will replace broken cables and lights.
After building up the walls of the ground floor and building the interior details, such as the Art Supplies, Pieces of Art, toilet, the shop counter and other things, you start the first floor. The base and insides are built first, but there’s a twist – a section of the floor can be slid out to enjoy fully. It’s one of the best side-style builds I’ve ever built, the way the centre Art displays are positioned, the Art of offer – including 3D recreations of famous works of art such as ‘The Scream‘ and ‘The Girl With The Pearl Earring‘, they all look amazing!
It’s one of LumiBricks features to have flaps and pull-out sections, it’s almost a guaranteed feature and what sets them apart from other brands. On the front of the building you’ll notice a large piece of brick-built art, it’s a rather cool 3D recreation of a famous painter, Vincent Van Gogh. Built on a 8×8 plate, you layer up tiles, studs and small fang pieces to create a modern piece of art for your very own brick-built Art Gallery, perfect!
Moving onto the outer walls and the colour scheme remains the same, a dark nougat. Stacking masonry bricks, plates and windows, the walls soon come together and in a very nice and aesthetic way. There’s a small balcony to the right, a flap at the back that can be opened to get a better look inside when the floors are together and two more lights, just above the Van Gogh self portrait.
The top floor is where the exterior colour scheme changes to a very cool sand blue, one of my favorite brick colours. Again you start off building the base and the interior details, which on this floor there is a Pottery Corner and Dadaism exhibition, filled with pots, sculptures and other art pieces. In the centre is a hole, to be precise it’s a viewing point or balcony. It allows visitors to the Art Gallery a better look and a different angle to enjoy the Art from.
I really love the part usage and new quarte-dome pieces that make the window bays more pleasing to the eye, especially in keeping with the sand blue. Finished off with a 1×2 grey bar it looks amazing, actually the whole building once put together looks absolutely stunning – and we haven’t even mentioned the lights yet.
I hope you’ll agree with me that the overall LumiBricks Brick Art Gallery L9085 set certainly looks impressive, for an up and coming brand. The parts, the prints and the lights all come together to give you a set worthy of any brick fans display and collection. I really feel sorry for the LEGO ‘purists‘ when sets like this come along, they miss out on so many awesome buildings and different takes on classics. With LEGO‘s one-a-year Modular Building, LumiBricks is fast approaching the same amount of buildings in their first year or two of producing them, we expect more great things from LumiBricks!
The Lights:
LumiBricks are known for their lights and specialist bricks, they are part of every set and take it to the next level. So it deserves its own review section.
The photo below shows you just a handful of the light elements that come in the set. From cables and connectors to sockets and the LEDs themselves, it’s a nice mix of technology that is a breeze to install, thanks to the specialist cable-hiding bricks and plates. They are powered by a battery pack that takes 3 AA batteries, you can also connect it to a USB hub if you have more of them, it saves you time when switching everything on.
The instructions are very good for guiding you through the whole process, unlike other third party light kits where you need to dismantle half the set to install a single LED, here you install as you build, making it absolutely painless and very straightforward. LumiBricks are onto a winning combination here and long may it continue.
The Figures:
This is a part I usually skip as the figures are questionable at best, but there’s one in particular I need to mention, I call him Mr Gold!
He’s actually a Street performer, one of those cool living statue figures sprayed with gold or solver paint. It’s so cool LumiBricks have done this and included a different kind of figure from the generic store clerk or customer, which are some of the other characters included.
The designs and prints are stunning as always and the choice of people is good, with a clerk, customers, artists and even a member of staff from the Artisan Gelato Studio is included who we previously saw in the Gelato Store F9078, which we also reviewed.
Final Thoughts:
Overall the set looks absolutely gorgeous, from the buildings architecture and style to the enjoyable process of putting it all together. The sloped & layered roof in the lovely sand blue shade, the dark nougat brickwork and of course the brick-built Art inside. No part of the process was tricky, nothing really stood out as being difficult or tedious, all-in-all another superb set by the brand that rivals the leading one, LumiBricks.
If you are looking for a relaxing build that portrays a relaxing and emotion fueling Art Gallery, this set is perfect for you. It’s an awesome build and looks just as stunning on display!
We have an affiliate link and code if you would like to use it for this set and any others that take your fancy at LumiBricks.com. Use THEBRICKPOST during checkout to get 10% off. Thank you.
LumiBricks Brick Art Gallery L9085
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