A manifesto for artists who want to own their work.

MyArtPDF respects artists even when they don’t pay.
It rewards those who want to go further.

A note on institutional PDF standards

This manifesto reflects the values behind MyArtPDF — shaped by real studio practice and the reality of institutional expectations. When artists apply to galleries, residencies, schools, and open calls, they are rarely judged on design flair. They are judged on clarity, coherence, and a reliable PDF workflow.

We believe portfolio tools should be calm, predictable, and respectful: local-first by default, privacy-first in practice, and focused on readability over decoration.

About tools vs tooling

Many products treat portfolio creation as design first and document second. For artists, that inversion creates friction. A portfolio PDF is not a branding playground — it is an institutional document meant to be read quickly, printed reliably, and shared without surprises.

Artists don’t need infinite layout freedom. They need a stable structure, clean typography, consistent metadata, and predictable output across devices. Good tooling reduces decisions. It protects attention. It stays out of the way.

The problem

Most artists don’t struggle with their work. They struggle with the tools around it. Building a portfolio PDF has quietly become an exercise in compromise: choosing templates instead of structure, adapting content to software instead of the opposite, and rebuilding the same document again and again for each application.

The result is not better portfolios — just more friction. This is not a lack of talent or discipline. It’s a tooling problem.

Why creative SaaS tools fail artists

Most creative tools are built with the same assumptions: constant internet access, accounts and cloud storage, infinite customization, and engagement over clarity. These assumptions make sense for marketing teams. They make far less sense for artists applying to galleries, residencies, schools, or institutions.

When everything is customizable, nothing is stable. When everything lives in the cloud, ownership becomes abstract. When tools optimize for retention, artists pay with time and attention.

For many artists, this results in fragile files, broken layouts, lost versions, and the feeling that the tool is always in the way.

Local-first is not a feature. It’s a stance.

Local-first software is not about nostalgia or being “anti-cloud”. It is about responsibility. When your work lives on your device, you don’t need permission to access it. You don’t lose it when a service changes. You don’t trade privacy for convenience.

A portfolio is not content. It is a working document, reused, edited, archived, and sent over years. Local-first means files you can keep, versions you can archive, and workflows that survive time.

What we refuse to build

We refuse to build tools that require accounts just to function, platforms that lock files behind subscriptions, interfaces that encourage visual noise over clarity, products that monetize attention instead of utility, or systems that treat artists as “users” first and practitioners second.

Not every problem needs more features. Some need fewer decisions.

Who this tool is not for

This tool is not for people who want infinite layout freedom, designers looking for expressive typography playgrounds, marketing portfolios optimized for animation and flair, or anyone who enjoys tweaking margins more than selecting work.

Those tools already exist — and they are good at what they do.

What we are building instead

We are building a quiet tool: a tool that respects institutional standards, prioritizes readability over decoration, keeps structure consistent, and lets the work speak.

A tool where your CV, biography, statement, and artworks live together. Where exporting a PDF is the end, not the beginning of friction. Where ownership is explicit, not implied.

MyArtPDF exists because portfolios should feel boring in the best possible way — stable, predictable, and professional. The art does the talking. The tool stays out of the way.