Autistic Boy Builds World's Largest Lego Titanic Replica
The teenager from Iceland, who has the autism spectrum said that building the Titanic replica helped him embrace his autism.
A 15-year-old boy from Iceland has built the replica of one of the world's most famous ships, the Titanic. Using 56,000 Legos, the Brynjar Karl Birgisson built the ship in 700 hours and 11 months. The teenager from Reykjavik, Iceland, who has the autism spectrum said that building the Titanic replica helped him embrace his autism. His work is now being exhibited in a museum in the US. It is placed at the Titanic Museum Attraction in Pigeon Forge in Tennessee.
The project was initially a family affair, with grandfather Ogmundsson, an engineer, and mother Bjarney Ludviksdottir helping out. Ogmundsson designed the original blueprint and helped him figure out how many tiny toy bricks would be needed to create the model.
Donations from family and friends enabled him to buy all the Lego bricks.
Brynjar says he was able to embrace his autism through building the Titanic replica. While 56,000 Lego bricks were earlier required for the model after the front part broke they had to buy more thus making it 65,000. The model is now 26 feet long and 5 feet tall.
Here is the Lego Titanic:
Earlier, he had difficulty communication which made him unhappy and feel lonely. The project gave him enough confidence to express himself, so much so that he is now giving interviews.
The Lego replica was shipped from Iceland in three large pieces and then reconstructed. By December 2019, it will reach the Titanic Museum Attraction. Brynjar's grandfather who is proud of his grandson's work one can learn from him. Brynjar's mother said while earlier she was not sure about her son's future, today she is no more worried.
CNN quoted Brynjar as saying, "When I started the building process, I had a person helping me in school in every step that I took, but today, I'm studying without any support. My grades have risen, and my classmates consider me as their peer. I have had the opportunity to travel and explore and meet wonderful people."
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 18, 2018 02:45 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).