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Kanvaz
Navi Mumbai, India
What it is
Kanvaz is a free, offline infinite-canvas reference board for VFX artists, 3D artists, and others who collect and connect visual material. Boards can contain 3D models, images, GIFs, video, audio, notes, colors, URLs, and file pointers. Supported models can be rotated live, viewed with several shading modes, and played with animations; Blender is required for .blend previews. Seven typed relationships connect references, which can then be explored as a graph in Map View. A single card may appear on multiple boards, with edits reflected in each location. The optional MCP Bridge lets Claude Desktop or Claude Code read and modify the active board over local IPC, with changes recorded in undo history. Plugins can add card types, commands, themes, and features, and the maker says creators can sell them without a marketplace cut. Boards stay local, with no accounts, telemetry, or cloud storage.
For and against
For
- Free forever with no feature paywall
- Handles varied visual reference media
- Graph view for typed relationships
- Cards can span multiple boards
- Local storage without telemetry
Against
- Blender is needed for .blend previews
- Known issues may affect MKV or AVI playback
- macOS build is unsigned
- Custom properties are text-only
The verdict
Kanvaz provides a local canvas for assembling, connecting, and revisiting many reference formats. Its offline privacy model and plugin support are balanced by the listed preview and platform limitations.
Who it suits
Kanvaz is aimed at VFX and 3D artists and anyone building visual reference collections. It suits users who want local, offline boards and graph-based connections without accounts or cloud storage.
Plans and prices
Free
Free forever · MIT licensed · no feature paywall
Read 4 Oct 2026 · github.com
On the record
- 3D preview
- Supported 3D models can be orbited live with multiple shading modes and animation playback; Blender must be installed to preview .blend files.github.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Audience
- The maker describes Kanvaz as built for VFX artists, 3D artists, and people whose work involves collecting, connecting, and revisiting references.github.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Connections
- Users can connect references through seven typed relationships and view them as a graph in Map View.github.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- File format
- A .kanvaz board is a ZIP container with board data and embedded assets, each checked with a SHA-256 integrity hash.github.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Integrations
- The optional MCP Bridge lets Claude Desktop or Claude Code read and modify the active board over local IPC, with changes recorded in undo history.github.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Limitations
- The maker lists text-only custom properties, possible MKV/AVI playback issues, no PDF text search, and an unsigned macOS build among known limitations.github.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Media
- Boards support 3D models, images, GIFs, video, audio, notes, colors, URLs, and file pointers.github.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Plugins
- Kanvaz supports plugins for card types, commands, themes, and features, and says creators can sell plugins without a marketplace cut.github.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Privacy
- The maker says Kanvaz has no accounts, telemetry, or cloud storage, and that network requests are user initiated; boards are stored locally.github.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Purpose
- Kanvaz is an offline infinite-canvas reference board for VFX and 3D artists and others who collect and connect visual references.github.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Security
- The security policy says only the latest release receives security updates and asks vulnerability reporters to email the maker rather than open a public issue.github.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Shared cards
- The same reference card can appear on multiple boards, with edits reflected wherever it is used.github.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Support
- The maker invites bug reports and feature requests through GitHub issues or email and says updates ship most weeks.github.com · read 4 Oct 2026
