Paintings in Minecraft may not be the first thing that springs to mind when you think of the game. But over the years they’ve taken on an important role in the cultural zeitgeist. Their distinctive look, mixed with playful ideas and little secrets, makes them one of the most intriguing aspects of Minecraft! They’re more than mere decoration, and each one has a story you might not spot at first glance. Today, we’re taking a look at every painting, what you’re actually seeing, and the artists behind them.
Crafting and using Minecraft paintings: crafting, sizes, properties
First, let’s look at the in‑game paintings and how to use them. They’re one of the oldest items and were added to the game as early as the Indev version of Minecraft. That makes them an extremely old feature from 2009, yet they still work exactly as they did back then.
You craft a painting from one wool, surrounded by 8 sticks. You can also obtain them from a Shepherd Villager in exchange for emeralds. Which painting you end up with is random. If you want a specific size, block off the frame by limiting the free space with blocks until only the desired size fits. In Creative mode you can now search specifically for paintings if you know the name.
Paintings are primarily for decorating and beautifying your walls, but they do have some special properties. They’re non‑solid, so you can walk through them and light passes through. That makes them great for hidden passages and secret rooms.
All Minecraft paintings: complete list, inspirations and Easter eggs
There are a total of 47 paintings in Minecraft, most of them created by Swedish artist Kristoffer Zetterstrand. His original canvases were scanned and adapted to Minecraft’s pixel art. You can view the originals online. Several of the newer paintings were created by Mojang artist Sarah Boeving. Their sizes range from 1x1 to 4x4 blocks.
The subject matter couldn’t be more varied. From surreal landscapes and references to classic art to Easter eggs from other games, Minecraft’s paintings offer plenty to talk about.
1x1 Minecraft paintings: names and meanings
- The doner with three pepperoncini: A doner kebab.
- de_aztec: A view of the map Aztec from Counter‑Strike.
- de_aztec (2): A second view of Aztec.
- The Albanian: A man in traditional Albanian attire.
- Target successfully bombed: Another Counter‑Strike map, this time Dust II.
- The money plant: A simple still life of a plant.
- The Wasteland: A view of a ravaged land, with a rabbit in the foreground.
- Meditative: A homage to both Salvador Dalí and Minecraft’s old rose.
1x2 Minecraft paintings: names and meanings
- The Wanderer: A nod to Caspar David Friedrich’s famous painting.
- Graham: Part of a larger painting. Shows King Graham from the King’s Quest point‑and‑click adventures.
- The Steppe Ride: An imitation of a Frederic Remington painting, only with a Minecraft horse and player.
2x1 Minecraft paintings: names and meanings
- The Pool: People bathing in the foreground of a surreal landscape.
- The Encounter: Two hikers facing each other, inspired by Gustave Courbet.
- Supper: A lovely sunset.
- The Coast / Creebet: A seascape with a green plant. In an alternate version, the plant is replaced by a Creeper head.
2x2 Minecraft paintings: names and meanings
- The Match: A hand lighting a fire.
- The Bust: A bust of the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, surrounded by flames.
- The stage is set: A blend of scenes from King’s Quest and Space Quest, two classic Sierra adventure titles.
- The Void: An angel gazing into the void.
- A Skull and Roses: A blue skull surrounded by red roses.
- The Wither: Shows how to summon a Wither. The only painting created by Jens Bergensten (
jeb_). - Baroque: A still life with a sunflower, a jug and a Minecraft cake.
- Down to Earth: Shows two Minecraft Villagers. Inspired by American Gothic by Grant Wood.
3x3 Minecraft paintings: names and meanings
- The Final Boss: Surrealist scene with a skeleton. King Graham appears again at the bottom right.
- The Tides: A landscape with a seated figure.
- The Fern: A fern with pixelated fire, lit by a spotlight.
- The Sunflower: A mix of different sunflowers.
- The Cave Bird: Shows a cliff with a bird.
- The Bouquet: Surreal scene with a staircase to nowhere, a blue canvas and a flower pot.
- The Citrus Owl: An owl peering from a crate at some lemons.
- Cotán: Based on a painting by Juan Sánchez Cotán, here with a golden apple and a glistering melon.
- Dennis: Portrait of Dennis, the dog from the Minecraft film.
3x4 Minecraft paintings: names and meanings
- The Backyard: A mix of a painting by Pieter de Hooch and Jacques‑Louis David.
- The Pond: A woman and a skeleton by a pond, inspired by the Renaissance.
4x2 Minecraft paintings: names and meanings
- The Fighters: Two fighters from the Atari game International Karate.
- The Passage: Surreal setting with a human skeleton and a Megatherium skeleton.
- The Costume Change: A mix of different scenes, with a person undressing in the foreground.
- The Find: A person excavating ancient ruins.
- Wisps of Fog: Incomplete mountain range, based on a 3D model.
4x3 Minecraft paintings: names and meanings
- The Toil of the Earthly: Shows Bruno Martinez, the skeleton from the game Grim Fandango.
- Kong: A gameplay scene from Donkey Kong.
4x4 Minecraft paintings: names and meanings
- The Index Finger: Combines a character from International Karate with the pointing finger from Michelangelo’s work and Caspar David Friedrich’s winter landscape.
- The Pig Portrait: Shows a girl with a drawing of the Minecraft pig.
- The Skull in Flames: A burning skull in the foreground. In the background, a Minecraft world based on an Alpha screenshot by Zetterstrand himself.
- The Sphere: A ball of light in a landscape, based on a painting by Giovanni Bellini.
- Unpacked: A homage to the small image in the texture‑pack selector before version 1.14, called pack.png. After the seed from Alpha 1.2.2 was found, it was immortalised in the game.
Conclusion: recognise and use Minecraft paintings
Many paintings in Minecraft have a fascinating history that you might not notice at first glance. Yet they’re an important part of the game and, like the music, simply belong. Some details are hard to see in the tiny pixels, so everyone may interpret them a little differently. You can certainly spot exciting Easter eggs referencing other games like Counter‑Strike, King’s Quest or Donkey Kong. So next time you decorate your house, you can use our guide to tell the story behind each painting.
If you want to honour the paintings, why not rent your own Minecraft server from us (https://www.4netplayers.com/en-gb/gameserver-hosting/minecraft/) and build a museum to display them all. Then invite your friends for a tour and tell them about the secrets hidden there.
