Inside the LEGO HOUSE OF DOTS

To celebrate the launch of LEGO DOTS, the LEGO Group invited artist Camille Walala to design the HOUSE OF DOTS

The HOUSE OF DOTS was unveiled on the morning of Tuesday, January 28, and is open to visitors until Sunday, February 2. It is a unique art installation that has seen the LEGO Group collaborate with artist Camille Walala, to celebrate the launch of LEGO DOTS, a new arts and craft theme that will arrive in shops on March 1.

“To launch DOTS and introduce this entirely new 2D building concept we have teamed up with esteemed artist Camille Walala and we wanted to create her most interactive work to date,” said Lena Dixen, LEGO Senior Vice President and Head of Product and Marketing Development, during the opening event. “We invited Camille to bring LEGO DOTS to life in this free public art installation that celebrates our shared values of creativity self expression and also accessibility.

“So the result of our partnership, our playing together, is the HOUSE OF DOTS – the ultimate celebration of DOTS. This fantastical house compromises of five rooms spread over eight shipping containers where the walls, the furniture, the frames – everything you see in there is a mash-up of Camille’s beautiful colours and patterns and DOTS.”

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Located in Coal Drop Yard in the Kings Cross area of London, UK, the HOUSE OF DOTS stands out thanks to its bright colours and bold design, hallmarks of Camille Walala’s work.

Launching LEGO DOTS

Upon entering the house, visitors find themselves in a living room featuring chairs, a coffee table and a plant pot. Defined cubic shapes have been used for all of the features, with most of them covered in single LEGO tiles – now also known as DOTS. Patterns surround the room’s mirror that have been created using these 1×1 elements.

“The first room is a full-on immersive experience, where you just come in and there is this wow factor,” Camille tells Brick Fanatics. “I like the idea of people coming closely and seeing how the new tile is used to create so many textures, then you move to the kitchen, which is really bold, I think is my favourite room. I love it because it is more like what I do with my studio in London, my team are quite graphic and bold.”

In the kitchen, huge sections of the wall are covered in LEGO DOTS. Schoolchildren from Kings Cross Academy designed colourful LEGO plates with coloured tiles, while AFOLs (adult fans of LEGO) did the same with white tiles on white plates. In total, over two million LEGO tiles were used to complete the installation.

The kitchen houses the first opportunity for guests to get hands-on with the new product and dot their own bracelet while sitting at the dining table. Upstairs, the colour palette changes in the bedroom, with tiles available that match the room’s hues. This time, visitors can dot a LEGO 8×8 plate. In the bedroom there is a playful colour theme that is matched by the bunk bed, with a cosy snug at the bottom.

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“I wanted to do something really chunky for kids, so it is a kid’s room,” Camille explains. “I thought about the dream kid’s room, what it could be, so much more pastel-ly colours. I found the colour palette a bit more tutti frutti – it looks like you want to eat everything in there. Colours and stripes, low seats and soft cushions just like candies – and a bunk bed, I would love to have had as a kid.”

In the bathroom there is a stark contrast between the black and white décor and the pink balls that fill the tub. The floor around the bath and the sink are completely covered in black and white 1×1 tiles, with occasional splashed of blue illustrating where the water has overflowed.

The final room is a mirrored disco room, with the DOTS tile shapes represented in green on the walls. Music is playing so anyone feeling energetic can dance like no-one except their reflection is watching, before exiting the house via the slide – assuming the rain has held off.

Camille is delighted to be sharing what, until its completion over the past few days, was only a concept: “It is amazing to create a fantasy house where push your creativity to the maximum, to make the kids see how creativity can be applied and that there are no rules.”

HOUSE OF DOTS is free to visit at Coal Drop Yard in London until Sunday, February 2.

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Author Profile

Graham
Graham was the BrickFanatics.com Editor up until November 2020. He has plenty of experience working on LEGO related projects. He has contributed to various websites and publications on topics including niche hobbies, the toy industry and education.

Follw Graham on Twitter @grahamh100.

Graham

Graham was the BrickFanatics.com Editor up until November 2020. He has plenty of experience working on LEGO related projects. He has contributed to various websites and publications on topics including niche hobbies, the toy industry and education. Follw Graham on Twitter @grahamh100.

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