Review: 31216 Keith Haring Dancing Figures from LEGO® Art

Keith Haring was a famous American pop artist, best known for having created stylized figures and animals, often drawn in lines that were simple but nevertheless packed in a lot of energy and movement. That style is the subject of the latest LEGO® Art set, 31216 Keith Haring – Dancing Figures.

Products in this article were gifted by The LEGO Group; the author's opinions are their own.

This article contains affiliate links to LEGO.com; we may get a small commission if you purchase.

31216 Keith Haring – Dancing Figures

• Release date: 15 May 2025 – pre-order available now from the links below, except North America
• Pieces: 1773

Price and link to purchase: 

• US$ 119.99 on LEGO.com US (no pre-order available)
• CA$ 149.99 on LEGO.com Canada (no pre-order available)
• GB£ 104.99 on LEGO.com UK
• AU$ 199.99 on LEGO.com Australia
• NZ$ 219.99 on LEGO.com New Zealand
• DE€ 119,99 on LEGO.com Deutschland
• NL€ 119,99 on LEGO.com Nederland
• FR€ 119,99 on LEGO.com France
• PLN 529.99 on LEGO.com Polska
• NOK 1649,90 on LEGO.com Norge
• DKK 1049.95 on LEGO.com Danmark

Other countries click here

 

Keith Haring biography

I was disappointed to notice that while the building instructions mention Keith Haring’s art style and contributions to children's education, they leave out any mention of being gay, the cause of his death, or the many meanings of his work.

Biography from building instructions for 31216 Keith Haring Dancing Figures ©2025 The LEGO Group

Keith came into contact with art at an early age, drawing alongside his father who was a cartoonist. After studying commercial art, he came in contact with the works of artists like Jean Dubuffet, Jackson Pollock, Mark Tobey and Pierre Alechinsky. The works of the latter encouraged him to create large images which would include writing, while sculptor Christo gave him inspiration on how to incorporate the audience.

Keith’s first recognized works were chalk drawings in New York subways drawn on empty black advertising spaces; often stylized figures and dogs. He considered the subway his laboratory where he could experiment with his style. Getting more famous, he literally moved outside, creating large murals, either voluntarily or under commission, adding more color to his work.

Keith Haring artworks featured in the building instructions for set 31216

©2025 The LEGO Group and The Keith Haring Foundation

After becoming more famous, the price for his work skyrocketed. As he wanted his art to be for the public, he kept drawing in subways, and handed out free posters. In 1986, he opened the Pop Shop in Soho, New York which sold shirts, posters and other merch featuring his art, as a way to get his work out to the public. Being criticised for going ‘commercial’, he replied: "I could earn more money if I just painted a few things and jacked up the price. My shop is an extension of what I was doing in the subway stations, breaking down the barriers between high and low art."

Haring was openly gay, and was diagnosed with HIV in 1987 and AIDS in 1988. At that time, his work took an even stronger focus on social and political themes, such as Apartheid, AIDS and the crack cocaine epidemic, using his art to create awareness and activism. On 16 February 1990, Haring died of AIDS-related complications. A pioneer and trailblazer, he was one of the inaugural honorees in the Rainbow Honor Walk in San Francisco in 2014.

The parts

Technic Beam 1 x 3 Thick with Center Axle Hole (7229)

The only element that comes close to being a new mold is Technic Beam 1 x 3 Thick with Center Axle Hole. This part was introduced back in January 2025 in 75402 ARC-170 Starfighter, but we have not shown it in any of our reviews yet, so I’m including it here. The new beam appears 5x in White (6529874 | 7229) in this set.

The name is pretty self-explanatory: the mold has the same dimensions as a standard 3L Technic beam (32523), but the center hole is replaced by an axle hole, adding new functionalities. The axle hole makes it possible to secure the beam in a fixed position using just a single hole, while a pin hole requires at least 2. This added functionality is the exact reason the element is included in this set, as you’ll see in the build section.

Recolors

Where the inventory really shines is the number of elements appearing in a new color. 

Starting with probably the most exciting one:

• 42x +2 spare Plate Round 1 x 1 with Hollow Stud and Underside Clip in Trans-Clear (6542392 | 5264)

This mold saw the light in January this year, and has directly become a favorite with our team and, judging by the comments, our readers too. The part is proven to be very versatile, and now you can use it ‘hidden’ in trans-clear!

The outline and back of the figures are black, bringing us 4 recolors.

• 84x Brick Curved 1 x 2 x 1 2/3 with 1 Cutout in Black (6534031 | 5907)

• 5 x Brick Round Corner 3 x 3 Macaroni with 2 Studs in Black (6542374 | 5152)
• 1 x Technic Beam 1 x 9 Thick with Alternating Holes in Black (6521101 | 6612)
• 8 x Slope 1 x 4 with 1 x 2 Cutout in Black (6577238 | 5654)

Each figure is covered with a monochrome layer, in eye-popping hues, resulting in even more recolors:

• 3 x Wedge Plate 2 x 4 27° Right in Bright Green (6542390 | 65426)
• 3 x Wedge Plate 4 x 2 Right in Bright Green (6542389 | 41769)
• 2 x Tile Special 2 x 2 with 2 Quarter Round Cutouts in Bright Green (6542391 | 3396)

We thought this figure was regular green when we revealed the Keith Haring LEGO set, but it's actually bright green – requiring one recolour less than green would have needed.

• 1 x Wedge Plate 3 x 2 Left in Bright Pink (6542396 | 43723)
• 1 x Wedge Plate 3 x 2 Right in Bright Pink (6545180 | 43722)
• 1 x Wedge Plate 2 x 2 Right in Bright Pink (6543496 | 24307) is finally united with their sibling which was introduced last year.
• 1 x Tile Special 2 x 2 with 2 Quarter Round Cutouts in Bright Pink (6541877 | 3396)
• 2 x Tile 1 x 2 with Stud Notch Right in Bright Pink (6545181 | 5092)
• 2 x Tile 1 x 2 with Stud Notch Left in Bright Pink (6542398 | 5091)
• 5 x + 1 spare Tile Round 1 x 2 Half Circle in Bright Pink (6542399 | 1748)

• 1 x Wedge Plate 6 x 2 Left in Orange (6542393 | 78443). No sign of their right sibling!
• 1 x Tile Special 2 x 2 with 2 Quarter Round Cutouts in Orange (6542395 | 3396)
• 1 x Plate Round Corner 2 x 2 with 1 x 1 Cutout in Orange (6550946 | 79491)
• 1 x Plate Special 4 x 4 with 3 x 3 Quarter Round Cutout in Orange (6542394 | 35044)

• 1 x Wedge Plate 3 x 2 Left in Medium Azure (6542400 | 43723). No sign of their right sibling.
• 1 x Tile 1 x 2 with Stud Notch Right in Medium Azure (6510952 | 5092). Here, too, sibling-less.
• 1 x Tile Special 2 x 2 with 2 Quarter Round Cutouts in Medium Azure (6542401 | 3396)
• 2 x Tile Special 2 x 2 with 2 Quarter Round Cutouts in Yellow (6542373 | 3396)

Other elements of interest

The set contains no decorated elements nor a sticker sheet, but there are many pieces that are still relatively rare.

The following elements have appeared in 2 sets or less prior to being used in this set:

• 1 x Bracket 1 x 2 - 2 x 6 in Black (6533764 | 6970)
• 4 x Slope Curved 1 x 6 in Black (6535144 | 6801) is on the edge of being a recolor
• 2 x Wedge Plate 6 x 2 Left in Yellow (6518942 | 78443)
• 2 x Wedge Plate 6 x 2 Right in Yellow (6518943 | 78444)
• 1 x Wedge Plate 2 x 4 27° Left in Yellow (6527828 | 65429)
• 32 x Brick Special 1 x 2 Rounded with Center Bars in Yellow (6529612 | 77808)
• 1 x Plate 3 x 3 Corner in Yellow (6518941 | 77844)
• 1x Wedge Plate 4 x 2 Right in Bright Pink (6545182 | 41769) was last seen in 2017
• 3 x Tile 45° Cut 2 x 2 (Triangle) in Bright Pink (6532058 | 35787)
• 5 x Wedge Plate 2 x 2 Left in Bright Pink (6518047 | 24299)
• 6 x + spare Tile Round 1 x 2 Half Circle in Bright Green (6536989 | 1748)
• 4 x Wedge Plate 2 x 2 Right in Bright Green (6534933 | 24307)
• 1 x Tile 2 x 6 in Medium Azure (6472014 | 69729)

The build

Each figure is built separately with their own instruction manual, allowing for a group build. 

The models come together in sections which are joined and covered in a monochrome layer of plates and tiles, resulting in a total thickness of 2 bricks (6 plates), excluding the mounting piece at the back. The result is bigger than I expected, so I added a minifigure for scale.

The black border is exactly 1 module wide all around. To create the right shape, the figures have a more complicated interior than the stylized exterior lets on.

Most of the rounded corners are achieved by a small assembly, held in place by a clip connecting to a Brick Special 1 x 2 Rounded with Center Bars (77808) on the inside.

Other shapes are created by using an array of angled bricks and plates, and round bricks.

The breakdancing figure in medium azure has legs at 2 different angles, resulting in a complicated construction, as this ‘x-ray’ shows, using a-frames, angled plates and sloped bricks to fill the gaps. I can only be amazed by the ingenuity of the design.

If you're interested in creating angles like this in your own models, be sure to check out our recent series of articles, Escaping the Grid, by Arno Knobbe.

Angles of 45° are achieved using Plate Angled 2 x 2, while more clips allow for sections to hold on. For more exotic angles, the designer used hinge plates, one of which is placed on a jumper plate.

The movement lines are represented by black tiles and plates, placed on trans-clear bars using the recolored plates with clip. Although I love the look of these additions, bringing the figures to life, they are a bit fragile and tricky to position. Still, well worth the effort.

In the back we find at the top a wall mount held in place by pins onto a LEGO Technic brick buried in the figure. Further down are 2 turntables functioning as a spacer, with a rubber tyre providing friction so the figures don’t tilt.

As an alternative to mounting the figures on the wall, 5 stands are provided. 

They are color-coded to make sure the right height is used for each character. Thanks to the new 1x3 Technic Beam, the two pins with 2L axle can sit rigidly in place, so that they slide into the wall mount without any friction, making it easy to take them out again.

Conclusion

Just wow! 

I am happy when a review gives me homework, as going in I was aware of Keith Haring’s work, but didn’t know his backstory. I was already intrigued by his style, which is in a way simple, but also complicated – resulting in art that feels alive. Reading up on his life made me love his work even more.

Keith has a very distinct style, making his work easy to recognize. That makes it also tricky to replicate in bricks: capturing the lively lines in the rigid LEGO® System grid must have proved a challenge, but the designer did an awesome job here. The LEGO version feels as alive and as in motion as the artwork it represents. 

I’m glad that the designer made the figures loose instead of ‘locking’ them onto a canvas, making them jump out even more, while also allowing for better displaying depending on your available space. Providing both a wall mount and a stand for each of them is just a juicy cherry on top of a very big cake.

LEGO Art started out with sets that were basically a big square with a lot of dots. Since then, the theme has evolved, literally breaking out of the canvas and utilizing the bricks to bring depth to featured art. 

I love this evolution, and I hope to see more artists receiving the same treatment in the future. One thing I think draws me to Keith Haring’s work is the way the characters, words and other objects fit into each other. The style reminds me of my favorite artist M.C. Escher, who often used interlocking shapes to fill an area. I would be curious to see how his work could be turned into a LEGO Art set.

As this is a New Elementary review, I am supposed to point out that this set comes with an array of black, transparent and colored parts, many of them newly recolored, making it a great parts pack. But going against my preference to always utilize bricks for your own creativity, I would prefer people not to part out this set, but to build the model instead.

 

READ MORE: All the new parts in LEGO® Star Wars 75409 Jango Fett's Firespray-Class Starship

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