Artboards

Summary

This lesson explores Artboards, the fundamental canvas of any Rive project. It covers how to create, select, and rename artboards, as well as how to manage their core properties such as dimensions, background gradients, clipping, and origin points.

Step by Step

1. 00:04
   Understanding Artboards

   Artboards serve as the canvas for all work. You can start with a preset size or a default 500x500px layout.
2. 00:33
   Selection and Hierarchy

   Select an artboard by clicking its name, clicking in the workspace, or finding it at the top of the Hierarchy panel.
3. 00:47
   Renaming

   Double-click the name on the canvas or in the hierarchy to rename it.
4. 00:56
   Properties and Origin

   Adjust position, size, and the origin point (0% by 0% is top-left; 50% by 50% is center).
5. 01:41
   Clipping

   Toggle the "Clipping" option to hide any elements that extend beyond the artboard's boundaries.
6. 02:05
   Background Customization

   Change the background to a solid color, linear gradient, radial gradient, or hide/delete it entirely.
7. 02:36
   Creating and Duplicating

   Use shortcut A to draw new artboards or Cmd + D to duplicate an existing one along with its animations and state machines.
8. 03:12
   Active Artboard

   The icon next to the artboard name indicates which one is currently active.

Notes About Current Rive

• Rendering Borders: Only content within the artboard's borders will be rendered in the final export, regardless of whether clipping is toggled on during design.
• Master Parent: Every layer added to the project must live inside an artboard, making it the root parent of all hierarchies.
• Efficiency: Duplicating artboards is the fastest way to create variations of an animation without rebuilding the state machine from scratch.