STAR DESTROYERS with their imposing silhouette, are one of the most iconic and instantly recognisable starships in the galaxy. These behemoth warships feature hundreds of decks, housing thousands of Stormtroopers and entire squadrons of TIE fighters. When we were planning the exhibition, we were always looking for opportunities to showcase LEGO® minifigures, and a Star Destroyer, built on a colossal scale, presented the perfect opportunity to deploy them – hundreds of them in fact!
LEGO® BRICKS
BUILD HOURS
At over 5m long and 1.5m tall, we initially thought we’d have tonnes of internal space to work with. However, the Star Destroyer’s distinct triangular hull shape required meticulous planning to strategically fit the various rooms. We also had to carefully consider the layout to ensure a degree of logical flow and incorporate additional detail.
Our final design features an impressive 50 individually decorated rooms, each teeming with LEGO minifigures and custom-built droids, offering a fascinating glimpse into the inner workings of an Imperial warship. The familiar Imperial vertical striped lighting panels are a recurring motif throughout the walls, with each stripe being a separate plate module cleverly attached sideways using SNOT (Studs Not On Top) bricks.
We dedicated a significant amount of time poring over reference materials to ensure we captured as many authentic details as possible. We even sketched out a complete interior map, outlining all the essential areas we imagined a Star Destroyer of this size would require, including Stormtrooper Barracks, an Armoury, a Medical Bay, the crucial Command Bridge, a Tactical Map Room, a Droid Repair bay, and even a Cafeteria for the crew!
Given that the original trilogy films offer limited glimpses into the interiors of Star Destroyers, we had a considerable amount of creative freedom to inject some fun and imaginative scenes showcasing how the Imperial crew might unwind between shifts! As you peer into the various rooms, keep an eye out for familiar scenes and characters from the movies, TV series, and even the games – how many can you spot?
In the vast hangar bays, we employed the techniques of micro-scale building and forced perspective to emphasize the immense scale of these docking areas. This allowed us to construct miniature yet recognizable versions of iconic Imperial craft like TIE Fighters, Imperial Shuttles, Imperial Troop Transports, and even AT-AT walkers.
Looking at the exterior of the Star Destroyer, you’ll notice heavily detailed plates and intricate structures that replicate the complex mechanical elements of the ship; this technique is known as Greebling. The term and the concept originate from the realm of scale model building and were extensively utilised by the original prop-makers at Industrial Light and Magic for the first Star Wars films. They ingeniously used cut-up pieces from commercially available plastic model kits to mimic the advanced technological machinery of the Star Wars universe.
Witness these incredible models and more at the world-first LEGO® Star Wars: The Exhibition. Embark on an epic, hands-on adventure through the Star Wars galaxy – Created by Ryan ‘Brickman’ McNaught and his talented team with over eight million LEGO bricks and 25,000+ build hours. Now open at Melbourne Museum.
