The Language of LEGO: Exploring the Unconventional Narrative of Bricks

In modern day, the LEGO® corporation emphasizes the fact that their LEGO® bricks are a system, rather than simply toys for play (Austin, 2022). In fact, LEGO® offers a unique platform for building models of collaborative and compassionate communication. This is due to many factors, including the low barrier to participation as well as the connectivity and reversibility of pieces which allow for continued and unlimited construction (Statler, 2001). Statler states that LEGO® is capable of much more than merely building aesthetic models

however, believing the LEGO® system should be considered as if it were a language (2001). Although LEGO® in and of itself is not a fully functional language, it bears significant competence for communication and illustration of emotions, thoughts, and ideas. Using semiotic theory, Statler explores how LEGO® can be utilized as a system of signs wherein the bricks represent a vocabulary communicated through a grammar system which “may arise not out of the individual LEGO® types or tokens themselves, but out of the social, artistic or pragmatic use of LEGO® as a medium for communication” (Statler, 2001). The paper illustrates this by showing how a single red LEGO® brick can function as an icon, index, symbol, metaphor, metonymy, synecdoche, or irony, each carrying different meanings. These individual signs can then form part of a more complex "landscapes of signs," where relationships between signs create metaphorical meaning (Statler, 2001). Statler also discusses the multimodality of LEGO® as it engages us both visually in a three-dimensional space and through touch, hence contributing to the affective impact. LEGO® leverages this multimodality using its vocabulary of bricks and interpretive grammar to create constructions which Statler refers to as temporal indices, being that which signifies the unfolding of movement, events or change. This is to say that LEGO® also communicates through narratives, even if such can not directly act on a temporal level certain formations and constructions of LEGO® can imply sequential action which inhabits the dimension of time. For instance, if one alters a LEGO® figurine such that it is in a position which resembles running, perhaps even alongside an object which one would likely be running from, the notion that the individual is moving would be implied.

Works Cited

Austin, D. (2022). Why more companies are putting LEGO® bricks in the office; executives believe bringing in the colorful brick toys helps with creativity, anxiety and communication. New York, N.Y.: Dow Jones & Company Inc. Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/blogs-podcasts-websites/why-more-companies-are-putting-LEGO®-bricks-office/docview/2707398261/se-2

Statler, M. (2001). LEGO® Speaks Working Paper. https://imagilab.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/WP20.pdf