How to Make Minecraft Pixel Art: Complete Beginner Guide

So you want to make pixel art in Minecraft? It's basically using blocks as pixels to create images. Each block has its own color, and when you arrange them right, you can make anything from tiny game icons to massive murals that span hundreds of blocks.

Pixel Art vs Map Art - What's the Difference?

People mix these up all the time:

• Pixel art is built directly on the ground or walls with blocks. Stand back far enough and you see the picture.
• Map art requires you to craft an actual map item to see the image.

Both are cool, both use similar techniques - converting images to blocks.

Making Pixel Art by Hand

Pick the Right Image

Not every picture works well. Here's what to look for:

1. Keep it simple when starting out. Game character faces, logos, that sort of thing.
2. High contrast matters. Clear color differences convert way better.
3. Skip the gradients. MC blocks only come in so many colors, so smooth gradients just turn into a mess.

Figure Out Your Size

This directly affects how long you'll be at it:

Size	Block Count	Good For	Pain Level
16×16	256	Icons, emotes	Manageable
32×32	1,024	Character sprites	Getting tedious
64×64	4,096	Detailed portraits	Pretty rough
128×128	16,384	Full map art	Don't even try manually

Gather Your Materials

Make sure you've got enough before you start:

• Wool - 16 colors, just need some sheep
• Concrete - Also 16 colors but brighter and more saturated
• Terracotta - Muted tones, good for vintage looks
• Stained glass - For special effects

Actually Building It

Row by row is the safest approach:

1. Start from top-left
2. Place blocks one at a time, checking your reference
3. Finish a row, double-check it, move on
4. Step back occasionally to see how the whole thing looks

Using Tools to Speed Things Up

Let's be real - manually figuring out which block matches which pixel is brutal. That's where online pixel art generators come in.

My Usual Process

1. Upload the image to Minecraft Image Converter
2. Tweak the settings - size, dithering, whatever
3. Check the 3D preview and rotate it around
4. Export however works best:
   • Download a blueprint to follow
   • Generate commands to build it automatically
   • Export a .schematic for WorldEdit

What's Dithering About?

It mixes different colored blocks to fake gradients. When you turn it on:

• Color transitions look smoother
• You get the illusion of more colors
• But up close it looks kinda noisy

Use it or don't depending on what you're going for.

Quick Color Reference

Some common blocks and their map colors (hex codes):

Whites: Snow Block #FFFFFF, White Wool #F9F9F9
Blacks: Black Concrete #252529, Obsidian #1D1D21
Reds: Red Concrete #A12722, Nether Brick #472A27
Greens: Emerald Block #0EC03A, Mossy Cobblestone #667633
Blues: Diamond Block #62D2E7, Lapis Block #1B439B

Full list is in our editor if you need it.

Stepping It Up

Adding Depth with Shadows

Like the staircasing tutorial explains, Minecraft maps show different brightness based on block height:

• Block higher than the one north of it = brighter
• Block lower than the one north of it = darker

Master this and your map art gets real shadows.

Going Bigger Than One Map

For huge pieces, stitch multiple 128×128 maps together. Our tool can auto-split large images for this.

Creative vs Survival

• Creative mode: Use command generation, thousands of blocks placed in seconds
• Survival mode: Place everything yourself, takes way longer but feels amazing when done

Quick Recap

Making MC pixel art boils down to:

1. Find a good image
2. Decide on size
3. Use a tool to convert it
4. Build it with commands or by hand

Whether you want to impress people on a server or just decorate your base, pixel art is worth trying.

Give it a shot → Free Online Converter