Summary:
- Martine Rose led a hands-on workshop at LEGO®’s Play Pavilion this summer, guiding attendees through a playful exercise in self-expression and design.
- Participants were invited to reimagine personal wardrobe pieces using LEGO bricks, with the help of master builders.
- In conversation with Hypebeast, Rose highlights the importance of community, creativity, and maintaining a sense of play as key drivers in both her work and inspiration.
Every creative knows the power of unrestricted play – it sparks new ideas, flips perspectives, and brings that sense of raw joy that fuels innovation. And no one embodies that spirit quite like LEGO. (Fun fact: the brand’s name literally means “play well.”)
In celebration of World Play Day this summer, the Danish brand linked with London’s Serpentine gallery to create the Play Pavilion – an open-access, LEGO-built structure designed by renowned architect Sir Peter Cook, right in the heart of Kensington Gardens.
Running from June 11 to August 11, the immersive space hosted a 9-week lineup of free, IRL workshops with some serious heavyweights: Martine Rose, Nike, Iglooghost, Niko B – creating an immersive playground for London’s youth that encouraged collaboration, imagination, and community.
At Martine Rose’s workshop, attendees were invited to reimagine something from their wardrobe in LEGO bricks, in an act of self-expression – brick by brick. With help from LEGO’s master builders, Martine guided the designs in an intimate session inside the pavilion.
Once the workshops were wrapped, we caught up with Martine to talk about creativity, fun, and why play still matters in design – even at the top of your game.
Check out Martine’s thoughts below:
Hypebeast: As kids, we have a seemingly infinite amount of creative energy and curiosity, which is diminished with time. How do you stay inspired?
Martine Rose: It’s an attitude I adopt in every area really, having an element of playfulness is absolutely necessary in order to keep me engaged and inspired. I feel lucky that I have the opportunity to do that.
Hypebeast: “Community” is a word that’s often overused, but there’s clearly a growing appetite among young creatives to connect in real life. Your workshop with LEGO at the PLAY Pavilion is a great example of this. How can the fashion industry continue to foster authentic, in-person creative connections in meaningful ways?
Martine Rose: It’s people and communities that drives everything, the only way forward is an attitude and culture of putting people at the centre. There isn’t one way that’s going to be authentic for everyone, you have to be authentic to who and what the brand is, for me people are at the heart of everything we do.
Hypebeast: Play seems to be a consistent thread in your work. Do you have any specific rituals or approaches that help you bring a sense of playfulness into your creative process? And how has that evolved as the Martine Rose brand has grown?
Martine Rose: I don’t have any specific approaches – its humour and a lightness of touch that inspires me. We find different ways that people can tap into the brand, whether through a 24-hr experience or a fun pop-up, it’s about engaging in a different way.
Hypebeast: Do you take breaks? What does a break in between working sessions look like for Martine Rose? What helps you reset and refresh?
Martine Rose: Without sounding too earnest, I don’t really consider what I do work, it’s an extension of who I am so I don’t view it in those terms. I have a family and young children, so time away with them is a reset, they give me a fresh and different perspective to things.
Hypebeast: With social media flooding our feeds with endless inspiration, how do you think emerging designers can carve out a truly original point of view through imagination?
Martine Rose: I’m not inspired by social media. It’s about being disciplined enough to research broadly and it’s important to make use of all other sources – seek out and connect with people, having conversations can be just as inspiring as visual content.
Hypebeast: London can be a grind – but how does the city continue to feed you creatively and what are some of your favourite ways to ‘play’ in the city?
Martine Rose: It’s straightforward, I love the energy of London, it’s continuously feeding creativity – from a bus or tube ride, walking down a high street, going to a museum, gallery or market – the abundance of all these things is the beauty of living in a city
The post Martine Rose Reflects on Creativity, Self-Expression, and Play Following LEGO®’s PLAY Pavilion appeared first on Hypebeast.
