Lego Artists Turn Jukebox Into Tiny World at Canberra Museum
Two artists spent years building 15 worlds inside vintage objects using millions of Lego pieces and 2,500 minifigures. The exhibition imagines tiny civilizations thriving in abandoned human relics, from a VW Beetle to a 76-year-old jukebox.
Imagine opening an old grandfather clock and finding an entire community of tiny inventors trying to turn it into a time machine.
That's the world Jackson Harvey and Alex Towler created for their exhibition RELICS: A New World Rises, now open at the Canberra Museum and Gallery. The friends spent years building 15 large installations showing Lego minifigures creating new societies inside objects humans left behind.
The premise is simple but captivating. It's the year 2130, and humans have abandoned Earth for mysterious reasons. The tiny Lego people who remain have moved into our forgotten belongings and made them home.
A vintage fridge became a cryogenic wellness resort. A claw machine transformed into a futuristic space port. Inside a Volkswagen Beetle boot, a bustling society thrives where chrome and plastic meet.
"Lego pieces aren't meant to fit in the front of a VW Beetle, but if you have a V-Dub and you have Lego and you squish them together, you can figure it out," Towler explains. "That's the message."
The artists sourced most of their materials second-hand, blending vintage relics with salvaged Lego bricks. Harvey's personal favorite is a 76-year-old Wurlitzer jukebox from the 1940s, now housing its own miniature world.
With 2,500 minifigures and millions of tiny pieces, the exhibition rewards close attention. Hidden stories wait around corners, down hallways, and behind shelves. The artists included Easter eggs throughout, encouraging visitors to explore every angle.
Why This Inspires
Harvey and Towler want people to see everyday objects differently. "Lego has become the majority of our lives. It changes the way we've looked at the world," Towler says.
The exhibition celebrates creative problem-solving and thinking beyond instructions. It proves that amazing things happen when you ignore the "normal" way of doing things and imagine new possibilities.
The show welcomes everyone, whether you're a serious Lego enthusiast, bringing your family for an adventure, or have never touched a plastic brick before. The artists designed each installation to spark wonder and nostalgia in equal measure.
RELICS: A New World Rises runs through January 31, 2027, giving plenty of time to discover what happens when creativity meets rebellion against the instruction manual.
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Based on reporting by ABC Australia
This story was written by BrightWire based on verified news reports.
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