October is when life begins to slow down in China. LEGO wanted to bring a little more colour, a little surprise, and a little more life into the city. A hint, perhaps, that play continues even when the buzz of summer leaves.

So Our LEGO Agency China hand-built more than 380,000 LEGO botanical blooms, turning flowers into streams, and streams into waves flowing out from Tank Shanghai Art Center onto Shanghai’s West Bund. The LEGO Botanical Wave, stretching approximately 30 metres long and covering 800 square metres, turns the simple act of building into a city-scale experience.

And at the heart of the exhibition is Where Blooms Begin, where visitors are invited to build a LEGO botanical flower of their own. After scanning their creation, the physical flower becomes a digital bloom, joining a constantly evolving flower landscape alongside creations made by other visitors. As more flowers enter the experience, individual creations begin to move together, creating a collective digital flower flow that echoes the monumental physical wave outside.

The distinction is intentional. The 380,000+ blooms that make up the outdoor installation were hand-built for the exhibition, while the indoor experience gives every visitor the opportunity to create a bloom of their own and let it join the flow.

Alongside the Botanical Wave and Where Blooms Begin, the exhibition features Bloom Gallery, with 18 LEGO Botanical arrangements and 18 artworks created by artists and AFOLs (adult fans of Lego). LEGO Bloom Exhibition is running from October 1 to 29.