MULTIMEDIA BLACK HISTORY PROJECT AWESOME BLACK CREATIVITY: A CELEBRATION OF BLACK CULTURAL ICONS IN LEGO® BRICKS SET TO HIT RETAIL SHELVES JANUARY 12, 2027 VIA NO STARCH PRESS/PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE
PRE-ORDER NOW FOR DELIVERY BEFORE HOLIDAYS
Written by Richard Dryden | Art by Dave Kaleta
“It deserves a permanent spot on your coffee table!” — Mimi Valdés, Film & TV Producer (Piece By Piece, Hidden Figures, Harlem)
“With his latest tome, Richard Dryden built an epic, necessary bridge between culture and LEGO, brick by brick.” — Noah Callahan-Bever, CCO of COMPLEX
From the revolutionary sounds of Nina Simone to trail-blazing achievements of Serena & Venus Williams, the boundary-pushing fashion of Virgil Abloh and the groundbreaking influence of media mogul Oprah Winfrey, Black creativity has long shaped the way we experience music, art, fashion, film, entrepreneurship and the world around us.
Awesome Black Creativity: A Celebration of Black Cultural Icons in LEGO® Bricks, a new art book written by Richard Dryden with artwork by Dave Kaleta, pays tribute to that influence through an unexpected medium: LEGO® bricks.
Arriving in stores and through major online retailers January 12, 2027, via No Starch Press with distribution through Penguin Random House, the 176-page hardcover highlights 27 figures whose ideas, achievements, and contributions have left a lasting mark on culture. It features a dynamic collection of changemakers: from literary giants Toni Morrison and Zora Neale Hurston to filmmaker Ryan Coogler, artist Kehinde Wiley, activist Colin Kaepernick, and musician and filmmaker Questlove, the book brings together different generations and disciplines in a celebration of Black imagination and innovation.
Organized from A to Z, Awesome Black Creativity pairs original LEGO® sculptures with writing that explores the lives and legacies of its subjects. The result is part art book, part cultural history, and a reminder that creativity takes many forms. Whether through a record, a photograph, a film, a building, or an act of resistance, each figure conveyed work that became their legacy of challenging convention.
The ABC project began in January 2022 when Dryden and Kaleta, who both competed on Season 2 of LEGO Masters, launched a weekly collaborative series on Instagram. What started as a shared interest in LEGO® building and Black cultural history soon developed into something larger. Later that year, Awesome Black Creativity made its exhibition debut at Brickworld Chicago, taking home the award for Best Artwork.
Since then, the project has continued to find new audiences beyond social media. In partnership with the DuPage Children’s Museum, Awesome Black Creativity has grown into a traveling exhibition, introducing visitors to Black cultural figures through Kaleta’s distinctive brick-built portraits. The exhibition is currently on view at the Illinois Black History Museum through November 30, 2026 offering an opportunity to experience the artwork in person ahead of the book’s release.
The next chapter will take Awesome Black Creativity even further. A book tour and additional museum stops are planned for 2027, with dates and locations to be announced. The upcoming events will bring the project into new spaces and communities, continuing the conversation around Black history, artistic expression, and the cultural contributions of its subjects.
At its core, Awesome Black Creativity is about recognizing the people who have expanded what’s possible in their respective fields. By sketching a silhouette of their likenesses in LEGO® bricks, Dryden and Kaleta offer another way to engage with their stories, connecting the familiar language of a childhood building toy with generations of Black achievement.
Awesome Black Creativity: A Celebration of Black Cultural Icons in LEGO® Bricks is available for pre-order now via No Starch Press/Penguin Random House, ahead of its January 12, 2027 release. And if you order directly via No Starch Press before December 10, shipment is expected to arrive before the holiday seasons. And it’s an amazing Holiday Gift deal. If you pre-order through No Starch before December 10, you get 25% off at only $24.99 and it is expected to arrive before Dec 25.
Table of Contents Preface
Introduction
A: Alvin Ailey: Dancer, Choreographer
B: bell hooks: Author, Feminist, Academic
C: Colin Kaepernick: Civil Rights Activist, Athlete
D: DJ Kool Herc: Founding Father of Hip-Hop
E: Ekow Nimako: Sculptor
F: Frederick McKinley Jones: Inventor
G: Gordon Parks: Photographer, Film Director, Author
H: Halle Berry: Actor, Director
I: Issa Rae: Actor, Screenwriter, Producer
J: Janelle Monáe: Singer-Songwriter, Actor, Author
K: Kehinde Wiley: Painter
L: Leah Chase: Creole Chef
M: Marsha “Pay It No Mind” Johnson: LGBTQ Activist, Performance Artist
N: Nina Simone: Singer-Songwriter, Activist
O: Oprah Winfrey: Host, Actor, Philanthropist
P: Philip Freelon: Architect
Q: Questlove: Musician, Author, Film Director
R: Ryan Coogler: Film Director, Screenwriter, Producer
S: Sidney Poitier: Actor, Film Director, Diplomat
T: Toni Morrison: Novelist, Professor
U: Usain Bolt: Athlete, Entrepreneur, Music Producer
V: Virgil Abloh: Fashion Designer, DJ
W: Williams Sisters: Athlete, Entrepreneur; Athlete, Fashion Designer
X: Xenobia Bailey: Textile Artist
Y: Yasiin Bey: Rapper, Visual Artist
Z: Zora Neale Hurston: Author, Anthropologist
About the Author
Richard Dryden is a writer and DJ from Brooklyn, New York. He has written about music, fashion, and Black culture for outlets such as Complex, The FADER, AFROPUNK, Office, VICE, LargeUp, and Okayplayer, and has performed as DJ Treats at fundraisers, museums, galleries, and events featured in VOGUE. His love of building LEGO® sets led to writing about LEGO® and competing on LEGO Masters in 2021. He also works across the entertainment industry, served as an associate producer on the New York Jamaican dancehall documentary Bad Like Brooklyn Dancehall, and has collaborated with the LEGO Group as a brand ambassador.
About the Artist
Dave Kaleta is an award-winning LEGO® artist whose creations have appeared in books, museums, and fan conventions worldwide. His work has been featured by NPR, CNET, Business Insider, the Victoria & Albert Museum (London), and major LEGO® fan networks. With over 40 years of creative experience, Dave’s “Miniland Plus” character style brings emotional nuance and artistic depth to LEGO® portraiture
Additional Praise for Awesome Black Creativity
“The Best Thing to Come out of LEGO Masters: Awesome Black Creativity…”
— Betsy Bird, Collection Development Manager for Evanston Public Library
On Nina Simone: “This book honors her and continues her work in the same breath.”
— Aaron Overfield, Archivist / Content manager for the Estate and Charitable Trust of Nina Simone
“This is an innovative vision of American music, using a children’s toy to celebrate profound art.”
— Nelson George, Author and Filmmaker
“Few LEGO books have as much purpose and sincerity behind every page as Awesome Black Creativity.”
— Dave Schefcik, editor-in-chief, BrickNerd
Awesome Black Creativity: A Celebration of Black Cultural Icons in LEGO® Bricks
Written by Richard Dryden, Art by Dave Kaleta
Hardcover / 9” x 9” / 176 pages
$24.99 USD / CAD 33.99 / GBP 22.99 GBP
ISBN: 978-1-7185-0494-3 / No Starch Press / Release Date: January 12, 2027