CUBETTARO REACHES LEGO 10.000 SUPPORTERS WITH "PANTHEON 124 AD" PROJECT

 ITALIAN ARCHITECT Giorgio D'Albano REACHES LEGO MILESTONES WITH "PANTHEON 124 AD" PROJECT

Pantheon 124 AD by Giorgio D'Albano

Italian architect Giorgio D'Albano, known online as “Cubettaro,” recently achieved a significant milestone in the LEGO community: his project “Pantheon 124 AD” reached 10,000 votes on the LEGO IDEAS platform, thus qualifying for official review by the LEGO team. Comprising 4,983 pieces, this model is a faithful architectural reconstruction of the Pantheon in Rome as it appeared in 124 AD. It incorporates LEGO Technic elements to replicate the dome and features a longitudinal section that reveals the detailed interior of the monument.

Based in Bologna, D’Albano is both an architect and designer. After publishing his project on LEGO IDEAS, he collaborated with archaeologists from the University of Bologna to ensure the historical accuracy of the model. His passion for history, architecture, and LEGO is evident in his Behance portfolio, where he showcases a wide range of works, from architectural design and historic restoration to exhibition setups and conceptual LEGO set designs.

Pantheon 124 AD by Giorgio D'Albano

Interview with Giorgio D’Albano (aka Cubettaro)

On His Career and LEGO Passion

1. Origins of Your Passion:

How did your passion for LEGO begin, and how has it influenced your professional journey?

<<My passion for LEGO has been with me since I was a child. I don't remember the very first set my parents gave me, but I do remember “Tagini,” a shop in Asti, my hometown. It had two huge windows full of built LEGO sets. I was fascinated by the Fabuland series back then, although I don’t think I ever owned one. The most memorable set I received, for Christmas, was the passenger train 7715. I was really young, but I wanted it because it was displayed in motion in the shop window, and I was already passionate about trains. I think everything started from that set.>>

2. The “Cubettaro” Alias:

You’ve mentioned the story behind your nickname “Cubettaro.” Can you share it with our followers?

<<“Cubettaro” was a nickname given to me by my brother Roberto. At the time, there were metalheads and "paninari" (Italian subcultures), and since we called LEGO pieces “cubetti” (little cubes) at home, he started calling me “cubettaro” because I always played with them. Soon, all the kids in our courtyard and my brother’s older friends started calling me that too.>>

3. Working with LEGO:

You've often mentioned your desire to collaborate with LEGO. What steps are you taking toward that goal?

<<All my studies, from high school to university, have focused on creative fields: architecture, urban planning, historical restoration, theater set design, exhibition layouts, video game concept design, furniture, gardens, monuments, and products. What’s missing? Designing LEGO! When I discovered LEGO IDEAS two years ago, I realized that designing LEGO sets opens up endless creative possibilities, just like in other design disciplines. IDEAS is a springboard for me, to show LEGO that my professional profile could be a good fit. My goal was to earn all the platform badges and reach 10K votes with product-focused concept models, rather than simple MOCs. The ultimate aim was to be interviewed on their blog, which hasn’t happened yet, but in that interview, I planned to explain this dream in hopes someone from LEGO recruitment would read it.>>

Pantheon 124 AD by Giorgio D'Albano

On the “Pantheon 124 AD” Project

1. Technical Challenges:

What were the main technical challenges in building the LEGO Pantheon?

<<This model is a conceptual build designed as a longitudinal “French-style section,” revealing the monument's richly detailed interior. I studied various dome construction techniques used by other LEGO builders. To reproduce the world’s largest concrete dome, I designed two interconnected hemispheres. After that, I mapped out the entire building digitally with bricks in stud.io. The hardest part was defining the curved perimeter walls and the scale. I created 11 versions of the full circle, later halved, ensuring at least three anchor points on the baseplate. Once the outer structure was done, I built the dome using wedge-shaped components that included both the inside and outside surface. They had to interconnect and be stable. The final challenge was staying under 5,000 pieces, which I managed, excluding minifigures.>>

2. Historical Sources:

You referenced historical texts like those by Palladio. How did you integrate them into your build?

<<Yes, Palladio was one of the last to see the ancient Roman version of the Pantheon, so his ten drawings of the “Ritonda” (as he called it in the Fourth Book of Architecture) were essential. I used a facsimile edition. Other key sources included Carlo Fontana’s interior survey (1650), Piranesi’s drawings, and modern references like “Rediscovering Ancient Rome” (Treccani) and “Pantheon: Architecture and Light” by archaeologist Marina De Franceschini. Still, I must clarify that despite striving for accuracy, LEGO’s inherent limitations, brick shapes and connections, require compromises and simplifications.>>

3. Minifigures & Narrative:

The model includes seven minifigures representing gods and Emperor Augustus. How did you select and design them?

<<It was a mix of personal choice and historical research. The Pantheon housed numerous deities, not just the twelve Olympians but even a statue of the deified Julius Caesar. Since only half the monument is represented, I chose six gods with strong Roman significance: Jupiter, Minerva, Mars, Venus, Diana, and Neptune. Historical sources suggest the entrance niches featured colossal statues of Marcus Agrippa and Emperor Augustus. I chose Augustus, as Suetonius credits him with monumentalizing Rome. If I ever design the full Pantheon, I’ll add more historically accurate minifigures, including painted statues.>>

Pantheon 124 AD by Giorgio D'Albano

On Promotion & Outreach

1. Promotion Strategy:

You reached 10,000 votes, no small feat. What was your strategy?

<<The project was approved on IDEAS on November 29, 2025, and reached 10K votes in 165 days, on May 13, 2025. For a non-IP set, that's remarkable. The key moment was being selected as a Staff Pick. At that time, I wasn’t actively promoting the Pantheon (I was working on The Fifth Element for a '90s challenge), and I didn’t think it had a chance. I mainly made it to show my skills to Stefano Mapelli, hoping for future collaborations. But once it became a Staff Pick, it received up to 180 votes per day and stayed on the homepage for over two months. That visibility was crucial. I do think the homepage system is flawed, it should show random rotating projects to give equal opportunity.>>

2. Channels Used:

Which channels did you use to share your project?

<<After four months, the project's visibility dropped, though it still got 20 daily votes. So I created new promotional content, reaching out to archaeologists and experts to help refine and relaunch it. Most didn’t reply, but Professor Maria Cristina Carile from the University of Bologna did. She said: “It’s lovely, but it lacks the gilded bronze roof!”, a fact she wrote about in an academic paper. I updated the roof accordingly and also rendered a full-version simulation. Since the model is mirrored easily, it can be built in full by duplicating and flipping the existing half.>>

3. Community Support:

Did other LEGO creators or groups help boost your project?

<<I believe the biggest voting boost came from the U.S. AFOL community. Americans seem to love European monuments, especially Ancient Roman ones. I also got support from ArchaeoReporter, who published an article that helped reach archaeology enthusiasts in Italy. Thanks to journalist Angelo Cimarosti for that.>>

Lego Ideas "True friends" by Giorgio D'Albano

On Creativity & Design

1. Creative Process:

How do you balance digital tools and real LEGO bricks in your design process?

<<I do all initial design work digitally using stud.io. But I test specific sections with real bricks, like in Borgo Bricco, where I created custom modular baseplates. Only by physically building them could I ensure no gaps or collisions and achieve the intended complexity. That MOC is now fully built and functions perfectly thanks to that hybrid workflow.>>

2. Creative Consistency:

Is there a theme connecting your various builds like Borgo Bricco and Chrysalis?

<<No recurring theme on purpose. Each project aims to show a unique and original design approach. I want to build a portfolio of diverse LEGO creations to demonstrate range, not just chase popularity or licenses. True Friends is a sculptural depiction of the unlikely friendship between a cat and dog. Chrysalis is a proposal tied to a fictional story: the winning author would get both a book and LEGO set published. Borgo Bricco is a modular medieval village with over 70 layout combinations and full playability. Pantheon is a display model and historical replica. Perhaps that’s why it found a stronger audience, it aligns with LEGO IDEAS’ adult fanbase.>>

3. LEGO & Historical Architecture:

How do you see LEGO design evolving in relation to historical architecture?

<<If LEGO hires me, I see it evolving brilliantly! Jokes aside, I believe it's a winning theme, especially with adult fans. If LEGO starts producing faithful reproductions of historical architecture, complete with accurate minifigures, collectors will be thrilled. Look at the success of Stebrick’s high-end models as proof.>>

True Friends and Mirò by Giorgio D'Albano

Tips for Aspiring LEGO Designers

1. Advice for LEGO IDEAS:

What advice would you give to someone launching a project on LEGO IDEAS?

<<Honestly, after a year on IDEAS, I wouldn’t recommend it. My first year was great, I enjoyed discovering projects. But after uploading my first build (Borgo Bricco) on May 31, 2024, it became exhausting. Why? Because the joy of building is inversely proportional to the time spent promoting your project. The more you push your project, the less time you have to build or live your life. You either commit to constant self-promotion or move on.>>

2. The Role of Research:

How important is historical and cultural research in building real-world inspired LEGO models?

<<In my view, it’s very important, but you must accept the design limitations of LEGO. Achieving historical accuracy is constrained by the available parts and their geometry. The challenge is to find clever ways to suggest complex details using limited elements.>>

3. Interaction with the Community:

How do you handle feedback from the community and how does it influence your future projects?

<<Regarding feedback from the community, I respond with infinite gratitude. Expecting

someone completely unrelated to take care of your idea or project, sign up on Lego Ideas,

and vote for it, is something still incomprehensible and exceptional to me. So,

I have enormous respect for those who vote for my projects, support them, and maybe

share them with friends or on social media. For this reason, I reply to everyone and always express my sincerest gratitude.

This aspect, therefore, connects to what I said earlier, and so I also answer the second

part of your question. The creative time for ideation and design is limited

precisely by promotion. Presenting projects regularly, trying not to be annoying, is often frustrating.

So, either one constantly designs new things, enjoying

the creativity and play that Lego offers, or if one’s intentions are to reach 10,000 votes, they know that more than half of their free time

will be spent promoting that project.

Assuming it is not a lucky, exceptional project or one with an IP of extreme popularity.>>

Lego IDEAS Chrysalis by Giorgio D'Albano

Lego IDEAS Chrysalis by Giorgio D'Albano

Lego IDEAS Chrysalis by Giorgio D'Albano, the "book"

Borgo Brikko by Giorgio D'Albano

Borgo Brikko by Giorgio D'Albano