This one-minute video shows how BlockWorks collaborated with has non-profit organisation Reporters Without Borders to build a virtual library to support freedom of speech.
Created as a digital home for political journalism The Uncensored Library was designed by BlockWorks – a collective that specialises in Minecraft-based architecture.
The group worked with Reporters Without Borders to create the library in the Minecraft game, which has over 145 million active players per month, as a space that can be accessed worldwide and is less heavily regulated than other mediums in countries without a restricted press.
This video shows the library rendered in the game.
Inside the Uncensored Library, players are able to discover journalists' work that has been censored in their country of origin.
Minecraft's book-crafting function allows players to add their own writing, but books cannot be removed or destroyed.
The library was built in a neoclassical style which has often been used in the western world as a display of culture and power, referencing the ancient civilisations of Rome and Greece.
BlockWorks aimed to subvert those meanings, instead using it to represent the power of knowledge and truth under oppressive regimes.
The project is supported by Hatice Cengiz, fiancee of the late Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi, as well as internationally acclaimed writers like Nguyen Van Dai and Yulia Berezovskaia.
Blockworks' other projects include a collaboration with the Guardian to create an alternate, more sustainable vision of urban living, and a five-day youth workshop with RIBA on borders.
Read more about The Uncensored Library ›