LEGO Architecture: Towering Ambition Exhibit

In the spring of 2011 our family visited Washington, D.C. I had lived in the area for 3 years growing up and my husband and I had lived there from 2000-2003. We were excited to take our daughter to see D.C. and to revisit some of the museums. In the course of planning our trip, I read about the LEGO Architecture: Towering Ambition exhibit at the National Building Museum. With my family being huge LEGO fans, we knew this was a must-do event and worked it into our schedule.

Several of the buildings that are included in the exhibit were in Chicago where we had visited the previous summer, so my daughter was excited to see models of buildings that she recognized. We had timed admission tickets as they were only letting a certain number of guests in at a time. There were 15 models in total, several of which are available as LEGO Architecture sets. The models included several conceptual skyscrapers that were not actually built. The room had a lot of natural light, which unfortunately made it difficult to take pictures of some of the displays. I had been expecting more models than there were in the display. I was also a bit disappointed that the exhibit was designed to go through once and then finish. My 5 year old wen through at a quicker pace than we would have preferred. We would have liked the opportunity to return to the models as she was building (one stay with her, the other go to the models and then change places).

Sears Tower*

John Hancock & Empire State Buildings

The exhibit also included a LEGO building area where kids (and adults) could build structures and then add them to a city mat. My daughter and husband enjoyed building their creation and seeing the other creations that were there.

Building with LEGOs

Her Creation on the City Mat

The day that we attended, a master architect was building a scale model of the White House. It was definitely interesting to see the level of detail that went into the model. We could see the progress between when we entered the exhibit and when we left.

White House Build

The LEGO Architecture: Towering Ambition Tour closed at the National Building Museum on September 2, 2012. It has moved to the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, MI where it opened on November 3, 2012 and will remain until February 24, 2013.

Admission to the National Building Museum was free, but admission to the event cost $8/adults and $5/child. I did feel that the admission price was steep for the size of the exhibit. We were also not that impressed with the National Building Museum other than this exhibit. However, we were glad that we went.

At the Henry Ford Museum, admission to LEGO Architecture: Towering Ambition is included with your museum membership. As members of the Henry Ford Museum, we plan to visit the exhibit at least once, perhaps the afternoon that we attend Holiday Nights at Greenfield Village. Based on previous experiences with exhibits at the Henry Ford, I believe their exhibit space is larger than the National Building Museum, so hopefully you will be able to wander between models and building areas.

* I know it is now the Willis Tower. But I grew up in Chicago with my Dad working at the Sears Tower. It will always be the Sears Tower to me.