By Deborah Reed

WKTV Managing Editor

deborah@wktv.org

Using 10,000 hand-painted LEGO bricks, artist Aaron Liepman created the seven-foot hummingbird mosaic, Pixels of Life, that now hangs at the Wyoming Branch of Kent District Library (KDL).

The ruby-throated hummingbird is set to a 10-foot backdrop of a giant pink coneflower painted in a pixel style by Ann Arbor Visual Artist Katie Hammond.

Liepman entered the piece in ArtPrize 2023 and is happy the piece is now on display for the public.

“Pixels of Life was created to be shared and to be seen,” said Liepman. “I hope that library patrons, young and old, enjoy interacting with it as much as Katie and I enjoyed creating it.”

Art and science…together?

Liepman and Hammond share more than artistic talent – both artists also love science. 

A biology professor at Eastern Michigan University, Liepman says he was aware of an artistic side of his personality when he was young.

“I really enjoyed art class, but also went pretty hardcore into science.”

Hammond admitted to always having an interest in science. “I almost majored in biology instead of doing art in undergrad. The combining of science with art is something that I really enjoy.”

When Liepman reached out to Hammond about needing a backdrop for his hummingbird mosaic, Hammond couldn’t resist the opportunity to combine art and science.

The creation of a flying jewel

Pixels of Life is Liepman’s third ArtPrize entry.

“I love hummingbirds,” said Liepman. “They’re the most incredible creatures. So much color. The highlight of summer for me is watching hummingbirds at the feeders and appreciating how beautiful and agile and brilliant they are.”

Feathers on the neck of the male ruby-throated hummingbird can look either black or ruby red depending on the angle.

“If they turn, they can go from black to the greatest, most brilliant ruby that you’ve ever seen – and it’s immediate,” said Liepman. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Creating a Hummingbird mosaic, however, was not easy.

“It was so incredibly difficult because trying to reduce the color palette of this bird, of this flying jewel, down to a manageable number that I could create in my studio was just an exercise in futility.

“I did my best. This one has more colors than anything I’ve ever made before; it had 70 colors.”

However, Liepman knew his hummingbird was not complete – it needed a backdrop. But he did not have time to build an 8-foot flower out of LEGOs.

“When I was thinking of another way we could get a flower for this bird, I thought of Katie,” said Liepman. “I asked her what she thought of making a giant 10-foot painting. I thought it would be fun to have mixed media.”

A giant painting? No problem!

Liepman gave Hammond free reign over creation of the backdrop.

“Aaron giving me free reign, that’s always exciting, but it’s also intimidating,” said Hammond. “When you have the whole world of possibilities open, you have to think what’s going to look best in the end.”

She brainstormed for weeks before deciding to paint one of the hummingbirds’ favorite foods, the coneflower, in the style of Aaron’s LEGOs.

Hammond also wanted the backdrop to be modular.

“I wanted it to be made up of a lot of different little tiles, or pieces, so that it would mimic and mirror the feel of the Lego piece.”

However, painting a 10×10-foot canvas with squares the size of LEGOs was not feasible in the time allotted. Instead, Hammond chose to magnify the scale and paint much bigger squares.

“I painted all the squares different colors to match a photograph of a pixelated coneflower,” said Hammond. “I thought it was a fun way to relate to LEGOs. I wanted to do something that would connect them stylistically and thematically.”

Click on the slideshow arrows (located on right and left sides of each picture) below to view the complete process of creating the Pixels of Life backdrop (Courtesy, Katie Hammond)

Every story has a beginning…

Liepman’s fascination with LEGO art began after seeing a LEGO wall mosaic in Chicago.

“I hadn’t seen anything like that before and was fascinated. I had never considered LEGOs as a 2-dimensional art form. I knew I wanted to try to create some art in that medium.”

Liepman decided to start with a small project, but quickly realized his “small” project needed to be quite a bit larger than expected.

“This is a thing that many people don’t understand about this art form,” said Liepman. “A screen resolution, that’s 72 dots per inch. When you’re thinking about a LEGO brick, a LEGO pixel, you get approximately 3.4. Your smallest details – if you need a single pixel for something – that smallest detail relative to the overall size of your composition means that things are going to get bigger than you think.”

Liepman’s “small project” became 20 inches square – and consisted of 1,024 LEGO pieces.

He also realized that he needed more colors than the LEGO palette offered.

Liepman began to paint LEGOs, experimenting with spray paint, then airbrushing with craft paints. Finally, he settled on artist-grade acrylic paints.

“There were a lot of things I learned by doing that first piece,” said Liepman. “When I stepped away from it though, I was like, wow, look what I made. There were no instructions, and I figured this out myself. I bet I could do more. I bet I could do better.”

Each mosaic taught him a little bit more. “I was making them bigger and more complex, and they were looking better and better. I didn’t get here in a day; it took me a long time.”

Much of Liepman’s time is spent formulating colors.

His first grayscale mosaic, Watchful, is 45 inches square and has 12 levels of gray, black and white. With the increased levels of grayscale, Liepman realized he could make the mosaics appear lifelike.

“When you can step away from the actual piece by about 20 feet, it looks like the feathers are soft, which completely blows my mind because every single piece is a geometric angular thing.”

Two of Liepman’s pieces have been auctioned at charity events – one being an autographed mosaic of Tom Brady.

“It’s been fun to be able to also give back to the community and to support good causes through my creativity.”

Commissions allow Liepman to afford the materials to continue creating and donate a piece from time to time to a good cause.

“These pieces really need to be seen and appreciated,” said Liepman. “It’s fun for me to have the opportunity to share these artworks with people because they don’t know what to think of them.”

20 years of funky…

Hammond says she has been an artist her entire life.

A dancer and visual artist as a child, Hammond then received a bachelor’s degree at the University of Michigan art school, followed by a master’s degree in fine arts at the Art Institute of Chicago.

She is now the owner and manager of a communal studio called Ann Arbor Artist Studios.

Hammond describes her painting style as “funky.”

“What I mainly do is acrylic painting on canvas and velvet,” said Hammond. “I like to experiment with a mixed media or non-traditional painting approach, using things like glitter, markers, or more experimental fabrics.

“My painting style is representational but it’s not realistic. It’s stylized and fun and poppy and bright colors and simplified.”

Hammond has completed several commissioned works featuring families and animals, two of her favorite subjects. She also paints murals, completing a large exterior mural in downtown Ann Arbor.

Hammond appreciates the ability to express herself through art – but also the connection it brings.

“From little kids through elderly people…I really enjoy being able to connect with all types of people through my art,” said Hammond. “The most rewarding thing about [art] is being able to see people have a positive experience with your work.”

Hammond says she purposely creates art people can recognize and connect with on some level.

“Anybody can do this; I’m not a genius”

Liepman hopes his artistic journey encourages other people who love art.

“Anybody can do this; I’m not a genius,” said Liepman. “I started with no experience. “I figured out that I could do something, and I kept leveraging the lessons I learned, thinking my way through problems and trying to come up with solutions. Bit by bit I have come up with a process.

“But it didn’t happen right away. It took a lot of practice. I figured out a process, and I’ve refined it over and over. After a while, you get good at stuff if you keep doing it.”

How to find Pixels of Life

Pixels of Life can be viewed in the teen area of KDL’s Wyoming Branch.

Liepman encourages people to view Pixels of Life from up close and far away so they can appreciate various details.

Share in the wonder of art and science

Aaron Liepman shares his artwork via Brickmaniac.com and Instagram. Liepman is also accepting commissions.

More information and examples of Katie Hammond’s work can be found on her website, Instagram and Facebook. Hammond is available for murals and other commissions.