Patchwork

Patchwork is a node-based image editor/patcher for Linux. It uses G'MIC and ImageMagick image processing frameworks. You load an image input, connect processing nodes using wires, and render the output.

Features

• Node graph editor: drag, drop, and connect nodes to build image processing pipelines visually
• G'MIC filters: auto-discovered from your local G'MIC installation (Sketch, Oil Painting, Denoise, Retinex, and hundreds more)
• ImageMagick operations: blur, sharpen, resize, rotate, color adjustments, edge detection, morphology, and more
• Built-in node types: Input, Output, Filter, Blend (12 modes), Color Adjust, Opacity, Coloring (HSL), and Mask
• Math and logic nodes: Basic math operators and logic gates
• Adaptive UI: responsive layout that works on narrow windows and mobile (thanks to Libadwaita)

Requirements

Dependency	Minimum version	Notes
Python	3.10+
GTK	4.0	via PyGObject
Libadwaita	1.0	via PyGObject
PyGObject	3.50	Python GTK bindings
Pillow	10.0	Python imaging library
G'MIC (gmic)	any	CLI — required for G'MIC filters
ImageMagick (magick)	any	CLI — required for blends, color ops, masks
blueprint-compiler	any	Build-time only

Installation

### From source (Meson)

```bash
# Install system dependencies
# Debian/Ubuntu:
sudo apt install python3-gi python3-gi-cairo gir1.2-gtk-4.0 gir1.2-adw-1 \
  meson blueprint-compiler gmic imagemagick

# Fedora:
sudo dnf install python3-gobject gtk4 libadwaita meson blueprint-compiler \
  gmic ImageMagick

# Arch:
sudo pacman -S python-gobject gtk4 libadwaita meson blueprint-compiler \
  gmic imagemagick

# Build and install
meson setup build
meson compile -C build
sudo meson install -C build

Quick development run (no install)

./run.sh

This compiles the UI blueprints on the fly and launches Patchwork directly from the source tree.

Getting started

1. Open an image: click the folder icon in the sidebar (or press Ctrl+O)
2. Browse filters: the sidebar lists all available filters and nodes organized by category
3. Add a filter: drag a filter from the sidebar onto the canvas, or double-click it
4. Connect nodes: click and drag from an output port (right side of a node) to an input port (left side of another node)
5. Tweak parameters: click a filter node to adjust its parameters
6. Render: click the Render button in the toolbar to process the graph
7. Export/Save: once rendered, click the save icon to export the result and save your project

Node types

Node	Color	Purpose
Input	Green	Loads an image from disk
Output	Red	Marks the final result
Filter	Blue	Applies a G'MIC or ImageMagick filter
Blend	Brown	Combines two or more images (12 blend modes)
Color Adjust	Teal	Brightness, contrast, hue, saturation
Opacity	Purple	Adjusts transparency
Coloring	Cyan	HSL color adjustments
Mask	Dark Teal	Mask-based compositing

Keyboard shortcuts

Shortcut	Action
Ctrl+O	Open image
Ctrl+S	Export result
Ctrl+Q	Quit
Ctrl+P	Toggle preview
Ctrl+Return	Apply filter
Ctrl+R	Reset parameters
Ctrl+T	Before / After comparison
Ctrl++	Zoom in
Ctrl+-	Zoom out
Ctrl+M	Toggle minimap

Project structure

Patchwork/
├── data/               # Desktop file, AppStream metadata, icons
├── src/
│   ├── main.py         # Entry point
│   ├── application.py  # App lifecycle, actions
│   ├── window.py       # Main window, signal wiring
│   ├── models/         # Filter definitions, app state
│   ├── nodes/          # Graph data structure, node types
│   ├── widgets/        # Node canvas, filter browser, comparison, parameters
│   ├── processing/     # Graph executor, threaded runner
│   ├── gmic/           # G'MIC CLI integration, stdlib parser
│   ├── imagemagick/    # ImageMagick CLI integration, built-in filters
│   ├── resources/      # Blueprint UI files
│   └── style.css       # Application stylesheet
├── flatpak/            # Flatpak build manifest (Flathub-ready)
├── .github/            # CI workflows
├── meson.build         # Top-level build definition
├── Makefile            # Developer convenience wrappers
├── pyproject.toml      # Python package metadata
└── run.sh              # Quick development launcher

License

Patchwork is distributed under the GNU General Public License v3.0. See the LICENSE file for details.