AFFOL: Janey Cook

Janey “Red Brick” aka Janey Cook
Age: 38
Country: Ontario, Canada
Your hobbies: LEGO, Painting, Sculpting, Beading, Educational Advocate, Promotion of the Arts, Writing, Hiking, Camping and Deck Hopping
Brickshelf Folder:
http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?m=bccook

When did you start building?
I am an artist by trade and proud parent of two teen boys currently residing in the northern limits of Southern Ontario, Canada. I was born and raised near Windsor, Ontario and for as long as I can recall creative arts has always been a primary focus in my life. I started to build so young that I don’t have any tangible memories of it although I fondly recall pouring over the catalogues and making lists for Santa and then joyfully receiving basic building sets and the “Homemaker Family” set. My parents were cognitively aware of what building toys (such as Meccano) provided in a sense of development for children and were generous on promoting and purchasing building toys for both my older sister (my only sibling) and I. I spent my childhood creating with various mediums, from cut and pasting, sketching, painting to playing with various building toys. LEGO was by far, my most favorite toy, followed up by the perennial favorites such as the slinky, silly putty, etch a sketch, hand held video games and numerous fashion dolls with a plethora of accessories.

Make believe and pretend was a primary focus of my play and LEGO allowed me to create little worlds that I could make exactly how I wanted the world to be. As a young girl I was mesmerized by scaled miniatures and tiny treasures one could hide in secret places and that still holds a level of intrigue for me. As a youngster my favorite LEGO theme was the Homemaker series which appealed to me because I could design furniture and homes with endless details to portray the worlds I wanted to create. When Minifigs entered my collection, I started to build apartment buildings, homes, shopping malls and countless theme parks for them to “visit”. Eventually I hit my early teens and put away my bricks to pursue my interests in education, the arts and dating. Twenty years, and two children later, I rediscovered the enjoyment of building and the intoxication of the addiction. That addiction not only led to a house brimming with containers of sorted bricks waiting to be transformed into one of the many things left to build on my “to do” list, as well as the LEGO brick tattoo I proudly bear on my right shoulder.

Why are you an AFOL?
Anything that allows anyone to explore their creativity is something I want to embrace. I proudly suffer the “Peter Pan” syndrome… “I will never, and must never, grow up!” and although it’s a total Cliché LEGO appeals to my inner child that refuses to conform to the realities of adulthood.

How many hours do you spend building with LEGO?
On average I spend a number of hours a week building with LEGO, and when there is a deadline for a display show I have been known to sit on the floor building for hours at end forgetting to stop to eat until I get to the point that my back gives out and my legs fall asleep, much to my children’s amusement. Many more hours a week are spent perusing online LEGO forums and surfing through various other fans online picture folders and trying to attend as many LEGO events as my finances and time allows.

Photos by Calum Tsang (Above left) and Allan Bedford (right) 

What are your favorite building themes (both what LEGO produce and what you like to build yourself?)
I tend to be “Jill of all themes, and Master of none”. I have been known to build in all scales from micro to maxifig and have included almost all the popular themes. Exploring many themes became apersonal goal when I found the online community, I wanted to experience it all. I believe that some of themes I have worked on fit more into my natural interests and artistic endeavors so if forced to stay with one theme, it would have to be sculpture and mosaics.

Although I do have a hard time resisting anything that resembles a traditional Doll house and tend to be recognized for the many red brick houses I have built. Therefore the sets that most appeal to me are the old Homemaker, some of the Belville, but mostly I purchase creator and mosaic sets or just basic bulk tubs.

Photos by Calum Tsang  

What do you like most about LEGO and their products?
The quality of the product, the tactile joy of running your hands through a bin of your favorite colored bricks, the ability for it to be something different each and every time you sit down to start a new project and the near limitless possibilities.

Five parts you would love LEGO to produce:
I am actually very satisfied with the parts that LEGO already provides. If I was forced at gunpoint to pick, I guess I would choose more windows and doors in different styles and colors and perhaps more varieties of foliage or flowers.

What is it like to be as a female in the AFOL world, which is dominated mostly by men?
I have mixed feeling about this. In many ways I feel comfortable with the fact that I just happen to be interested in something that is dominated by men since this has been an ongoing theme in my life. I’mthe type of girl that would rather go target shooting or do a house renovation than go to the mall shoppingfor shoes or to get my nails done. The community on a whole has been never openly or unfairly judged my ability to build due to my gender, although it has created some interesting dynamics at times. Perhaps women that build, that tend to be more demure may have a problem feeling they fit in but since that is not my nature I choose to let very little of that influence me. When push comes to shove, I build for myself first anything after that is purely a bonus. If the community can embrace that, that is wonderful, but if they can not, that will not discourage me. Having said that, I have been fortunate to make some remarkable friends from this hobby that goes beyond our shared building interests.

What would you suggest to LEGO to make their products more popular for girls?
I think that LEGO has always fallen into a “pink and aqua” mentality, which may hold a small market share but overall does a disservice by disregarding the fact that a majority of girls want to build things just as boys do. They do not need to make “girly” products to appeal to young ladies, they just need to promote the excitement of what makes LEGO the wonderful product it is; a new toy everyday.

Is LEGO doing enough to promote their products towards girls?
No, I think they are trying but failing miserably. I do not think LEGO should ever have a “girl” theme or line of products. I think products like their bulk bins, creator sets or the new mosaic sets are a perfect product for both boys and girls. Assuming girls just want to make jewelry and picture frames is a mistake they have been making way back from the beginning of the Scala lines right up to the morecurrent Clikits lines. Another bone of contention is the continual
mistake in all sets that contain Minifigs by not providing a better girl to boy ratio of the figs themselves. I am not the only parent asking “What has happened to gender equality?”

What would you like to see from LEGO in the future in relation to girls?
Simply LEGO needs to stop assuming that girls need “femininity” to be enthused or attracted to a product that has proven itself over time. The ability to conceive of an idea, design, and then bring that idea to some sort of satisfying culmination is a skill set both males and females can and should develop. It’s proven that building toys provided for young children
increases their ability to perform better in many other scholastic endeavors. Therefore, I think a promotion reminding parents that building is a cornerstone to skills that every child needs regardless of gender would be way more persuasive.

Photo by Jason Allemann

Any other comments you would like to share?
Motivating young girls to build is a passion with me. I encourage other AFOLs that already share their hobby with young children to go out of their way to include girls in this process. Over the years, I have asked countless girls that I come in contact with, if they build and do they have any female Minifigs. I am always surprised with how many girls have access to bricks but not a single female Minifig. I oftendiscreetly give those young girls (that show a genuine interest in building) a small handful of female Minifig heads and hair pieces, frequently including my “Sigfig” (representational Minifig of myself)
at smaller shows or talks that I give. It’s my hope that if this is something a AFOL club or individuals can afford to do, it’s one of the simplest ways of reaching the neglected building gender.

This hobby has some amazingly talented builders, both male and female. I am continually in awe of what my peers are building and sharing with this community. I am honored to be involved with many of the builders I have had the satisfaction of encountering and I am continually motivated by their high standards, principles and contributions.

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