gimp

MCP Server for GIMP - AI Assistant for Image Editing

Installation

Run this command in your terminal to add the MCP server to Claude Code.

Run in terminal:

Command

claude mcp add --transport stdio slliws-gimp-mcp-server python -m gimp_mcp_server \
  --env GIMP_MCP_HOST="localhost" \
  --env GIMP_MCP_PORT="3000" \
  --env GIMP_MCP_LOG_LEVEL="INFO"

How to use

This MCP server implements a comprehensive GIMP 3.0+ integration that enables AI assistants to control GIMP through MCP (Model Context Protocol). It exposes a range of tools categorized into Document Management, Layer Operations, Drawing Tools, Selection Tools, Color Management, and Filters, allowing automated editing workflows such as creating documents, drawing shapes, manipulating layers, applying filters, and exporting results. The server runs as a Python-based MCP service (gimp-mcp-server) and can operate in GUI or headless modes, making it suitable for both interactive sessions and automated pipelines. To use it, start the server and connect an MCP-enabled client (for example Claude Desktop) by configuring the MCP server entry with the host, port, and the gimp server executable.

How to install

Prerequisites:

Python 3.9+ (recommended for GIMP 3.0 compatibility)
GIMP 3.0+ with Python support enabled
System dependencies for GTK4 and GObject bindings (as required by PyGObject)

Installation steps:

Ensure Python is installed and accessible from your PATH.
Install the MCP server package from PyPI (or from source):

# Install from PyPI
pip install gimp-mcp-server

# Or install from source repository
pip install git+https://github.com/gimp-mcp/gimp-mcp-server.git

Verify the install by listing the server binary or invoking help (depending on your environment).
Configure and run the server using the provided mcp_config snippet (adjust host/port as needed).

Typical startup when installed via PyPI provides a command like:

gimp-mcp-server --port 3000 --host localhost --debug

If using the module approach:

python -m gimp_mcp_server --port 3000 --host localhost --debug

Additional notes

Notes and troubleshooting:

Ensure GIMP 3.0+ is installed with Python support enabled; this server relies on GIMP's GObject Introspection bindings.
If you encounter connection issues, verify that the host/port in your MCP client configuration match the server's listening address.
Check the environment variable GIMP_MCP_LOG_LEVEL to adjust verbosity (e.g., DEBUG for verbose logs).
The server exposes a rich set of tools; refer to the documented tool list to build complex image-editing workflows.
For headless operation, ensure the environment provides necessary display or uses a virtual framebuffer if required by GIMP on your platform.
When upgrading, review breaking changes in tool parameter names or return structures and adjust client configurations accordingly.

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