Welcome. We are about to dive deep into the world of creation of Minecraft, a name that will bubble up emotions of nostalgia with kids of all ages. In the realm of video games, Minecraft has had a prominent place, attracting over 91 million players on a monthly basis. The three-dimensional sandbox game created by Markus "Notch" has taken the world by storm, creating a place for this style of gaming. It has held up as a testament to the constant moving trends of gaming, still attracting players even a decade after the release. The ability to create, the hype around it, and the nostalgia continues to push it as one of the most popular games. For many of the kids of this generation, Minecraft has been their childhood, allowing for their passion and creativity, and entertained lots of content through gaming creators. These few creators were ones that were watched and revered by millions, building and creating their own world within Minecraft to share to the entire world outside. In a game of creation, building has become an artform that has blessed us with incredible worlds to set our sights on. We explore what it means for Minecraft to not just be a game, but an incredible medium with tons of possibilities.
Stampy's Lovely World
Simply the name of StampyLongHead has been ingrained into the childhood of many. Starting his channel in 2011, the fame of Minecraft propelled him into fame, watched by many kids, in which he featured him and his friends playing games and building his own little town within the Lovely World. Sadly, most of his audience has grown up over these 6 years, but these videos certainly held a special place in their hearts. Stampy built many different buildings typically see in a town-- a police station, cafes, and more; he also created spontaneous and arbitrary rooms including a lava room or just a candy room. The games reflected his creativity to utilize the hidden force of redstone in combination with his game ideas, like parkour with fire arrows, or eliminating zombies using traps. For many, the creativity of Minecraft as an artistic medium started and began as early as here, in which kids were amazed by the ability to create anything in this world. Even the novice simplicity of it had many hooked and excited to create. These kids would soon grow up and demonstrate the ability to turn just a few blocks into a whole new world. The photos below show the standard view he started almost every video with, an overlook of the beauty of the Lovely World, and features of some of his creative builds and games.
Technical Products | Joseph Garrett aka Stampy Long Head
Grian
If you've wandered down this building rabbit hole, this is someone who you will unmistakably meet. He was and is still a mentor, giving tutorials for all experience levels to supply the toolbox of creators. He has been a part the building community for so long that he is known to all as one of the originators of Minecraft building, inspiring most to take it up themselves. Grain had a Minecraft Build School in which he taught a variety of different skills like building bridges, walls, windows, and staircases-all basic and necessary tools before advancing to more and more complex builds. He also built many things such as his dream house and had build swaps with other creators like Mumbo. Some of these can be seen below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aiA6Bb7c-k
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrVxFJLHF0U&t=2364s
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsNynguyBGk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rY5NZ0PVcTQ&t=358s
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Technical Products | Charles Batchelor aka Grian
GeminiTay
GeminiTay is a Minecraft builder who has made everything from fairies to castles. Her immense knowledge of what can be done in Minecraft allows her to push the limits with new block choices and ideas, yet still appeal to the common player with her tutorials and transformations. In comparison to other channels featured so far, she doesn't have as large of a following, but by no means does this mean she is less talented. Even a quick glance at her builds exhibits the tremendous amount of talent, dedication, and attention to detail that cannot be ignored. All of her art can be found on her Twitter, which is linked below.
FairiesGemini's winter fairy build from her seasonal fairies collection
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CastleOne of many kingdoms Gemini has founded over the years both in survival and creative
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SurvivalA small farm area made perfectly quaint and effective for any survival player
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Technical Products | GeminiTay
Builder's Refuge
Builder’s Refuge, a Minecraft server, is the place to delve into a professional take on Minecraft building as art and even as a career prospect. Their commitment to making a welcoming community and having all the resources one could possibly need to build incredible structures is what makes them the go to place for making art in Minecraft for anyone.
Technical Products | multiple creators
Ashley's Work
I, and many others, have been inspired greatly by many of these creators to make my own works of art in Minecraft. Over the years, I have created many works of art in many different ways though Minecraft and it has grown to be something I enjoy and have become better at. Most people don't understand the potential and capabilities to create art in the gaming world. Minecraft allows for the expression of creative skills and also utilizes imagination. In my own builds, I have to consider which blocks and styles fit well into the full picture that I paint with my sculptures. For example, I had to make a gradient in the background, showing the sun peaking through the bridge, using a texture of different blocks that blend harmoniously within the background. There tends to be a general notion that gaming is mutually exclusive and doesn't provide any artistic value, but this is far from the truth. I hope in the future, people appreciate all different forms of art, even in gaming.
Technical Products | Ashley Nestor