New York City, Re-Created in Legos

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Mar 4th 2010 By Emily Tan

New York City, Re-Created in Legos

For most of us, when we want to reminisce about a vacation or a time when we lived in a different city, we flip through photo -- or Facebook -- albums. But when illustrator and graphic designer Christoph Niemann wanted to remember his times in the Big Apple, he decided to illustrate the memories using Legos.

What started as playtime with his kids, then a blog post for the NYTimes.com, is now Niemann's new book, "I LEGO N.Y." ($10.17, Amazon): It shows us the difference between regular cream cheese and the spread with scallions, what it's like to wait for the subway, and even the trick to figuring out if a cab is on duty or not. Check out the gallery for a sneak peek of a few of the Lego sculptures -- and his insights on what inspired each one.

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LEGO Hearts New York

Artist Christoph Niemann shows us what the Big Apple would look like if it were made out of Legos.

Abrams Books

Lego Loves New York

New York is my favorite place in the world. It can be ugly, rough and stressful, but it can also be a very pretty, charming and even whimsical city. One thing that has always fascinated me, is that most New Yorkers embrace all the aspects of the city, good and bad. The book is not supposed to bring to mind the big, grandiose New York, but all those little mementos that make lovers of New York wince, chuckle, roll their eyes or smile.

Lego Loves New York

It's absolutely crucial to understand the cryptic meaning of the taxi lights of New York City cabs. Otherwise you end up one of the desperate folks who tries to run after a cab whose driver is off to lunch in Queens.

Lego Loves New York

These neighborhoods may not be considered the fanciest part of town, but as far as their names go, they easily beat the Upper East Side.

Lego Loves New York

The shape of Manhattan is almost as cool as Italy, Chile or Alaska. What always srikes me about Long Island however is not only the shape, but the fact that such a wonderful and diverse place can have such an utterly bland name.

Lego Loves New York

At some point one becomes accustomed and laid back about New York being a pretty hectic place. The only times I have really felt that the end of civilization was upon us was when I tried to make my way into the Holland Tunnel at five o' clock on a friday afternoon.

Lego Loves New York

This is an homage to New York as a cultural power house. What I neglected to put in there though, were the terrific musicians who perform on the subway platforms, especially at the Bedford Avenue and Union Square stations off the L Train.

Lego Loves New York

I am no fan of rats or mice. However, when you spend half an hour waiting for the subway in the middle of the night, watching those little guys go about their business is often the only entertainment one has. So over time, I devoloped a certain amount of sympathy.

Lego Loves New York

These phenomenon are not entirely unique to New York, but New Yorkers have a uniquely colorful way to complain about them.

Lego Loves New York