On 08/08/08 at 8pm, all of the worlds eyes turn to China as it hosts the 2008 Olympic games. This will be a great moment for China, who is now given a historic chance to showcase its culture and its country to the world. Millions of people who never would have visited China or learned anything about it are now visiting and seeing the country at its proudest and most glorious.

It is China's moment to shine and to show the world how much of an amazing place it is; and I wanted to celebrate this momentous occasion in sculpture.





The number 8 is a very lucky number in Chinese culture; this giant LEGO sculpture of the number 8 is exactly 88 LEGO bricks tall and 80 LEGO bricks wide. The sides of the 8 each curve independently back and forward in space, reminiscent of a Möbius strip and of the infinity symbol, held together in the center by a simple white "cloth", a suggestion of the sincere and peaceful roots of the Olympics.

Red is a special color for the Chinese, symbolizing love, fortune, and happiness.





The base of the model is inscribed with various olympic games' names, written in Chinese: 田径 , 举重 , 花样游泳 , 击剑 , 摔跤 , 体操 , 射箭 , 乒乓 球 , and 自行车 (Track and field, weightlifting, swimming, fencing, wrestling, gymnastics, archery, table tennis, and cycling).













(I specifically included "Gymnastics" (above) because my father-in-law's friend is coaching the Chinese olympic gymnastic team, and his daughter was a hopeful for the U.S. olympic gymnastic team.)




(And did you notice there are 8 photos of this sculpture?)