Gesso

Gesso is a web-based portfolio and studio-management system for visual artists. It suits creators who want one record for artwork, sales, opportunities and contacts rather than a portfolio site alone. The strongest case is an artist-run business that needs connected operational records; artists needing client approval workflows or generous image capacity should choose another tool.

Overview

Gesso brings portfolio publishing together with practical studio administration. Its audience spans artists building a first portfolio and established artists managing an active practice. A custom domain, portfolio analytics and selling tools cover the public-facing basics, while connected records are the differentiator: marking a work sold updates the artist site, sales records, inventory and collector CRM. That reduces duplicate data entry and lowers the chance that a sale leaves one part of the business out of date.

The product is made by Liv Cappello, a painter and software engineer based in Portland, Maine. Gesso offers migration help for artwork, sales history, contacts, email lists, website content and custom domains, which makes switching less disruptive for artists with an existing operation.

Key features

Opportunity tracking covers shows, grants, residencies and open calls. Calendar syncing and reminders turn a list of deadlines into an ongoing application workflow, a useful feature for artists pursuing opportunities alongside studio work.

Studio and Pro subscribers can connect Stripe for checkout; Gesso says it takes no cut of sales. Those plans can also connect Prodigi, Gelato or Printful to produce and ship print orders. Sales can sync from Square and Shopify, while Mailchimp and MailerLite connections support existing email marketing setups.

Export options are unusually practical for a portfolio product: artworks, sales, expenses and contacts can be exported as CSV, and portfolio documents and certificates as PDFs. Payment card details are collected by Stripe rather than transmitted to or stored by Gesso. Gesso describes reasonable administrative, technical and organizational safeguards, aims to acknowledge security reports within three business days, and offers safe harbor for good-faith research under its policy and applicable law.

The main functional gap is client proofing. Artists who need clients to comment on, review or approve work inside the platform will need a separate service. Image limits also matter: Free allows three images per artwork, while every paid plan allows ten. Ten images can document multiple views and details, but image-heavy projects may still feel constrained.

Pricing

Gesso uses a freemium model, with a 7-day trial and paid access described as starting at $10/mo when billed annually. The plan entries show one upfront annual payment, but the displayed plan amounts and billing totals conflict for some tiers; confirm the charge before purchase.

• Free: $0.00 USD, with 10 artworks and three images per artwork. It is suitable for a small, tightly edited portfolio, not a broad archive.
• Portfolio: $120 a year, billed as one upfront payment of $120/yr, with ten images per artwork. This is the focused publishing tier for artists who do not need the deeper studio and fulfillment functions.
• Studio: shown as $20 a year and also as one upfront payment of $240/yr, with ten images per artwork. It is the logical step for artists needing Stripe checkout and print-fulfillment connections, but the conflicting figures require verification.
• Pro: shown as $32.50 a year and as one upfront payment of $390/yr, with ten images per artwork. It targets the fullest selling and studio workflow, subject to confirming the applicable annual price.

The free tier has no stated trial-renewal issue, while the 7-day trial gives prospective subscribers a short evaluation window. Paid plans do not state seat quotas, so Gesso is principally presented as an individual artist platform.

Platforms

Gesso runs on the web. That keeps the portfolio and studio records accessible across devices with a browser, but no native mobile or desktop application is identified.

Who it's for

Choose Gesso if you are a visual artist who wants a branded portfolio tied directly to inventory, collector records, sales and opportunity deadlines. It is especially well matched to artists selling originals or prints and maintaining those records themselves. The free tier works for a small starter portfolio; established artists gain more from the connected workflows, exports, migration support and paid selling integrations.

Look elsewhere if client proofing is central to your process, if each artwork needs more than ten images, or if you want a native app rather than a browser-based service.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Sold-work updates can flow across the site, sales records, inventory and collector CRM, reducing repetitive administration.
• Pros: Opportunity tracking with calendar sync and reminders supports grants, residencies, shows and open calls in one workflow.
• Pros: Stripe checkout without a stated Gesso sales cut, plus Prodigi, Gelato and Printful connections, supports direct and print sales.
• Pros: CSV and PDF exports, migration assistance and custom-domain support make the system easier to adopt and leave.
• Cons: No client proofing means review and approval work must happen elsewhere.
• Cons: Free is limited to 10 artworks and three images per artwork; paid tiers cap each artwork at ten images.
• Cons: Studio and Pro pricing displays do not agree with their stated annual upfront totals, so buyers must verify billing.

Alternatives

For a broader comparison, see Portfolio Website Builders.

Framer is the better choice when you want a general visual site builder across web and desktop/mobile platforms, with AI credits, CMS collections and bandwidth included in its free tier.

Portfoliobox fits artists seeking a permanent free web portfolio with 30 images, five pages and a responsive site, without a free-trial requirement.

Zenfolio is worth choosing when photography storage, photo volume and booking-oriented features matter more than Gesso's studio records.

Wfolio suits users prioritizing large storage quotas and gallery plans.

Pixieset Website is an alternative for a mobile-optimized site with 15 pages, 100 photos and blog posts on its free tier.

Journo Portfolio is a simpler publishing option when a low-cost site and custom domain are the priority.

Readymag is an alternative for layout-led, animated projects rather than connected studio administration.

Weblly is an alternative for AI-assisted site building with workspaces and monthly AI-credit plans.

Verdict

Pick Gesso if you want portfolio presentation combined with studio records, opportunity tracking and selling workflows. Its connected sale updates, exports and integrations give working artists a coherent operational hub. Look elsewhere if client proofing is essential, if image-heavy portfolios exceed ten images per artwork, or if the unresolved annual price displays make billing certainty a priority.