Artist left the law... for Lego

An article by Christine Y. Chen on portfolio.com profiles one-time New York corporate lawyer Nathan Sawaya.

Sawaya graduated from NYU Law School in 1989. He became "a Wall Street attorney, earning a comfortable six-figure salary—and working in a high-stress environment." Seeking a way to unwind, Sawaya began working on art projects in his spare time, working in clay at first, "then moving into more whimsical media, like candy."

And then he moved into Lego.

Sawaya won a 2004 Lego-sponsored competition to find the best builder in the U.S. He quit his day job -- and started working for $13 an hour creating sculptures for a Lego theme park in San Diego.

But he's done better since. In fact, Chen's article notes, although he's working longer hours than he did as a lawyer, he's also making more money than he ever did as a lawyer.

And he's playing with Lego.

You can see more of Sawaya's work at his own site, "The Art of The Brick." Be sure to click on the Gallery page. Sawaya explains some of his Lego creations in this interview on CNN.com.