Building blocks structure a career of ingenuity

Lego product designer from China brings creativity to world-renowned toy company, Wang Zhuoqiong reports.

Wen Xiaodong is the only product designer from the Chinese mainland on the 500-strong creative team at the headquarters of the Lego Group, the world renowned toy maker, in Billund, Denmark.

Being part of such an illustrious team would be an accomplishment for any young artist, but Wen stands out for being one of the senior designers behind the beloved Lego Monkie Kid collection, and the four animation series of the same name.

It is the first Lego series inspired by Chinese legends and has proved to be a hit. The Monkie Kid has been turned into more than 70 products so far, and is one of the best-sellers on the Chinese market.

Along with the Monkie Kid, traditional Chinese festival themed toys, which Wen has also had a hand in designing, have also proved popular on the international market.

It was Wen's natural creativity that brought him to the innovative company. He has no professional qualifications in drawing or painting, and graduated with a major in English translation from Xi'an International Studies University in 2010 before working in a gaming company in Beijing as a graphic designer for a year.

In 2012, he was recruited by the Lego Group and was sent to Denmark in 2016. At the headquarters, he met the design team, which is composed of people with different expertise and of various backgrounds and nationalities. Some were architects, engineers, painters and even circus performers.

The fact that Wen speaks fluent English and works with a multicultural perspective has helped him get along with his international peers.

His British partner, Justin Ramsden, speaks of their collaboration with praise and laughter. "We haven't had a fight in eight years," says Ramsden, who is a senior designer, the implication that the pair having been working hard and continuously is implicit.

The candid and soft-spoken Wen has a sense of pride in his job, and in bringing one of the most renowned Chinese fictional characters to life. There are so many Western superhero Lego products, he says. The Monkie Kid, released in 2020, is about a Chinese superhero and is based on the Journey to the West.

The lead character of the series, MK, is a teenager on the mission to save the world with his friends.

The shared values and cultural relevance linking the 500-year-old legend and the brand have inspired their designs.

"Both are child-friendly. Both are valued across generations," he says. "Much like how families in the West talk about Star Wars or grow up playing with building bricks, Monkie Kid is a great excuse for Chinese families to talk about the Chinese superheroes they are all familiar with. The tale about facing life's challenges and obstacles with courage and resilience never gets old," Wen says.

From idea to reality

In a toy company, understanding the story and having an idea is just the beginning. The process is more about making that idea happen. To develop a model from A to Z normally takes about a year and a half to two years. The model design takes around three or four months of constant sketching, building and designing to get to something that has the rough shape.

Wen is keen on learning, and did a variety of jobs throughout the process, from sketching and drafting concept to production.

Knowledge of materials, cost and safety from the production perspective has helped shape him into a more complete designer, he says.

Wen's favorite motto is "design is problem-solving".

For example, there is a ceiling for the number of new elements the group will develop each year, to minimize complexity and optimize the play experience.

When designing the two new characters for the Monkie Kid, the team managed to give the two minifigures the same shaped wig but in different color combinations.

"Every element we design has to be possible for buyers to repurpose, to express their own creativity. That is how we encourage them to maximize play value," Wen says.

Another example is the task of making Monkie Kid's cloud into something playable, in other words, how to translate a sketch of a stylized Chinese cloud, which is rounded and curvaceous, into a model both children and adults can enjoy.

Additionally, the materials had to highlight the lightness and transparency of the cloud.

"We want to give buyers the Chinese cloud vibe," he says.

Another challenge was how to ensure that the clouds, which are large and curvy, mesh with playing with Lego bricks.

After hundreds of tests and with the support from the textile design department, Wen and his colleagues decided to use a soft, transparent element that could be made into special shapes for the cloud.

Structure-wise, the team even managed to add play functionality to the cloud to make it even more fun.

"When the cloud is closed, you only see the silhouette of the palace," he says. "When you open it up, you see details of the Monkie Kid story, like the peach garden and the fight between Monkie Kid and Erlang God."

An artist of diversity

The 36-year-old has varied taste in art and aesthetics. He had written lyrics for a rock band, and says his favorite album is Hybrid Theory by Linkin Park. For a while, he hung out with graffiti artists at college, but now his office routine involves drawing traditional Chinese paintings with a brush.

At work, Wen often starts his day by browsing trend websites or design apps for inspiration, particularly anything associated with vintage street styles and fashion aesthetics.

The thing he cherishes the most is a silver necklace in the shape of a Lego brick. He was given it on his 10th anniversary at the Lego Group.

When asked how to become a designer at the company, Wen replies that "it is a job that comes with pride and honor". "Because of this, you want to stay humble, respect different cultures and backgrounds, and value every life experience," he adds.

Back when he was a boy in Xi'an, Shaanxi province, his father brought a set of Lego bricks back from a trip abroad. "My favorite thing to do back then was to put the pieces together and mix them with other toys, building something new."

That drive to be creative and curious continues today. Now drawing by hand and on Photoshop, Wen says his favorite part of work is completing a design task and starting a new one. "Only the best is good enough," he adds.

Contact the writer at wangzhuoqiong@chinadaily.com.cn