Tourist Practices in Minecraft

(1) ABSTRACTS

I propose a combination of creative and critical works inspired by tourist practices in the computer game Minecraft. Minecraft is an open-world sandbox computer game in which players inhabit, explore, and work in procedurally-generated world spaces. While these spaces have the feel of fantastical places, separate from the “real world” and existing for the player alone, there is an ironic edge to the game that is critically under-acknowledged: video game spaces are no more “separate” from players’ “real lives” than are resorts, theme parks, beaches, tourist traps, or any number of other such fake-fake-spaces. In short, playing Minecraft promotes the same kind of problematic mindset as any other tourist practice.

My final project will consist of three separate but connected artistic projects: a Minecraft “Travel Diary” and two photo & video-documented projects, “Minecraft Memorials” and “Minecraft Vacations”. Pulling my ‘findings’ from these projects together, a critical framing essay will connect my artistic output to the existing trend among Minecraft players to act as tourists and create documentation of their ‘travels’ through the game-space. This practice-based essay will be constructed in-progress on the Research Catalogue, an online workspace hosted by the Journal For Artistic Research. In addition, I am a member of a proposed panel that, if accepted, will speak about Minecraft-based art practices at the first ever Minecraft convention, “Minecon,” which will take place 18-19 Nov. 2011 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

MINECRAFT DIARY: Beginning in mid-November with the first release of the full version of Minecraft, I will begin a writing project inspired by the long literary tradition of travel diaries. This project will be updated most days, and will constitute a growing, dramatized narrative that will continue until the end of the fall semester.

MINECRAFT MEMORIALS: Within public Minecraft servers, I will lead several installations of virtual memorials to real-life coal mining accidents. “Practice installations” have already occurred, though I may have lost the documentation due to recent hard drive failures. The first “official” installation will occur in William Huber’s CTCS 505 class, in the next few weeks. Documentation of the installations, as well as blueprints for those installations, will be provided.

MINECRAFT VACATIONS: I will travel to other people’s public Minecraft servers and act like a tourist, taking photographs, asking questions, and doing whatever seems fun. These will not be large, remarkable servers, but small group servers that are not necessarily expecting me, and will not necessarily want me around. I will document my actions, as well as the owners’ responses, positive or negative.


(2) LINKS

Blimp Filled with Tourists Crashes in Minecraft Server: http://minecraft.swgi.org/index.php?action=gallery;sa=view;pic=43

Block Tourist: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfMIao0c8bQ

Journal For Artistic Research: http://www.jar-online.net/

MineCon (18-19 Nov. 2011): http://minecon.mojang.com/

Minecraft: http://www.minecraft.net/

Minecraft Memorials: http://minecraftmemorials.tumblr.com/

Minecraft Urbanism, by Sam Kronick: http://minecrafturbanism.blogspot.com/

The Minecraft Tourist: http://theminecrafttourist.blogspot.com/