From Walls to Pixels: How Are Minecraft Paintings Created?

Minecraft has released a new video that shares more about how the in-game paintings are created. Let’s watch it out now!

Paintings were first introduced in Minecraft with the "Indev" update in 2010. This update included 19 different paintings of various sizes, featuring iconic illustrations. Years later, Mojang celebrated Minecraft's 15th anniversary by adding 15 new paintings in the Tricky Trials update, bringing the total to 46. Recently, Minecraft has released a new video named “THE ART OF MINECRAFT,” showing the process of creating these paintings.

In the video, Jasper Boerstra, Minecraft director says that the popularity of paintings comes from their abstract nature. “Different players see different things in the paintings," explained the director. And this leads to "really interesting conversations." Players use Minecraft paintings creatively in their builds, and it's also common for them to recreate Minecraft paintings in real life.

Minecraft Paintings — layers use Minecraft paintings creatively in their builds.

Abstraction might be one reason Minecraft players like the paintings, but it's not the only one. The paintings also include interesting references. For example, "Graham" is inspired by the painting "Quince, Cabbage, Melon, and Cucumber" by Spanish painter Juan Sánchez Cotán.

"Humble" is another pop culture example that references "American Gothic" by Grant Wood, an American painter. There are also references to Minecraft itself, like the Creeper's head in "Creebet," the rose (an old game item) in "Meditative," and "Wither," the first Minecraft painting without a connection to real-life art. Altogether, the video offers a fascinating look at an iconic feature of the sandbox game.