Today, we’ve got some of the very best WordPress themes for professional artists and illustrators that you can find on the market! Whether you’re a digital freelancer conducting your business and interactions with clients online or a traditional illustrator with a physical studio, we’re sure to have something just for you!
But before you go around picking out whatever WordPress theme looks nice and dandy, you need to know what features and considerations to keep in mind when picking out what WordPress theme you want to show off your creative pieces and projects.
What should an Artist or Illustrator Watch Out for in a WordPress theme?
The overall visual look of your site is probably your first priority. If your portfolio’s aesthetic doesn’t match the visual theme, it might not show off your work in the best light and may even turn away clients and leave a bad impression on hirers if you’re applying to a creative studio or agency. There’s a lot of artists out there whose portfolio sites are mostly minimalist so they don’t risk drawing viewers’ eyes from the main focus: their work. However, some of these themes do come with various interesting ways to present your work aside from simple static galleries
However, the purpose of your site should be just as important as its design. If you’re making a portfolio site, you’ll want a portfolio WordPress theme. If you want to conduct your business digitally by sending rough drafts and other work for proofing to clients, you need to ensure that your theme can accommodate that. We’ve compiled tables below each theme blurb so you can get a quick look through what they have, but we’ve also linked their respective theme pages so you can check out their demos and other additional features.
Check out this video for some other pointers to take note of when building your art website:
A quick summary of things you might want in your art and illustration website are as follows:
- Portfolio Galleries and Sliders: Great for displaying images of your work or your process
- Image Proofing and Protection: Sets up password protection so only clients who you’ve given the password to can access work-in-progress images. Especially good for preventing unauthorised downloading of your images. This list doesn’t feature a lot of themes with this function, but we do recommend looking into photography themes specifically if this is what you’re looking for!
- eCommerce Functions: From storefronts for merchandise and artworks to Payment plans and price tables; a definite boon to those of you working from home!
- Newsletters and Contact Forms: These are useful to helping keep site visitors up to date on recent projects and open slots in your workflow or schedule for them to commission or consult you as and when is necessary!
Watch out for visual page builders too, as some of these themes ship with premium products that would cost a fair bit when purchased separately, and can also help you tailor whatever themes you get.
The following videos also offer some great WordPress theme suggestions too:
This is by no means a definite list, so do check out the reviews we’ve written and the theme tables we’ve collated because we’ll be including all the additional features that come bundled with this line up of stellar themes!
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1. Leedo – Creative Portfolio WordPress Theme
Leedo is a WordPress theme all about popping and vibrant visuals and colour schemes, a great fit for artists that favour more saturated colours in their work while still staying in line with more minimalist sensibilities.
This WordPress theme prides itself in having an aesthetic that can be characterised as bright, bold yet pretty simple. This boosts readability, and stays consistent through all of its homepage demos. Each pre-made layout and demo showcases balanced typography and unique formats to host images of your art. Personally, I think that this is especially great for graphic designers more focused on simple design work.
Aside from that, you also get access to various inner page layouts for blog posts, visual portfolios and ecommerce stores. The blog layouts go especially well with the SEO optimisation, and any creative agency or even individual could leverage on this to get their site more exposure by writing blog posts about your projects to rank on search engines.
| Features | |
| Price | $41 |
| Number of Layouts | 20 Home page demos |
| Page Builder & Customisation | WP Bakery Page Builder (with Templatera add-on more focused on layout management) |
| Portfolio Features & Layouts | Slider Revolution included |
| Commerce Functionality | WooCommerce compatible & shop layouts included |
| Image proofing & Protection | NIL |
| Newsletter & Contact Forms | Contact Form 7 |
| Additional Plugins & Functions | Parallax background effects for both images and videos in addition to 200 shortcodes |
| Last Update | 5 December 2020 |
Do give this theme’s page and live preview a visit!
2. Ekko Artist – MultiPurpose WordPress Theme for Illustrators and Artists
A juggernaut of a WordPress theme, Ekko’s adaptability and customisability ensures that any creative can build a site that’ll present their work and services exceedingly well.
possesses itself as a multipurpose WordPress theme for a variety of niches. While the over 50 demos on display don’t show any particularly specific format for art or illustration professionals, we do recommend that you consider this theme regardless. The widescreen layouts and various portfolio and image display functions shown in demos like the Wedding Planner and Web Design demos are some neat features creatives such as you can make use of. There are even modules for pricing tables so you can layout the various payment plans and services you have for clients.
The only downside I see in this WordPress theme is that it appears more catered towards those looking to make classy and professional sites. Ekko does make up for this with the sheer amount of customisability offered with its various page elements and blocks; all easily rearranged and added or removed with WP Bakery.
If you want a theme that provides more bang for your buck, Ekko will give you just that.
| Features | |
| Price | $59 |
| Number of Layouts | 50+ Full Website Demos, 60+ pre-made inner pages & 21 different portfolio layouts |
| Page Builder & Customisation | Drag & Drop WP Bakery included |
| Portfolio Features & Layouts | Slider Revolution included |
| Commerce Functionality | WooCommerce integrated with plenty of online store layouts |
| Image proofing & Protection | NIL |
| Newsletter & Contact Forms | Contact Form 7 |
| Additional Plugins & Functions | Parallax background effects for both images and videos in addition to 200 shortcodes |
| Last Update | 20 April 2021 |
So give Ekko a try and visit its product page and live preview!
3. Musico WordPress theme for Multimedia Artists
Musico is a WordPress theme made for musical artists and all manner of creatives keeping up with the hippest trends.
This WordPress theme was originally made more for music artists with all the features they might need for hosting audio files and video recordings for performances. However, the gallery and portfolio features that Musico offers can be easily repurposed for visual designers. In fact, there’s plenty of use for the audio and video hosting features if you’re working with a variety of media too as is the case with animators and the like. The video hosting part is honestly good too if you like to document your whole artistic process, and helps give potential clients a better idea of your artistic and creative personality.
There’s also the added bonus of image protection options made possible through watermarks and password-locking features; a strange addition to a music theme, but a welcome one at that. Not to mention the very nice shop layouts to sell merchandise like artworks or even things like tote bags and enamel pins that feature your illustrations and designs!
| Features | |
| Price | $64 |
| Number of Layouts | 8+ demos, & plenty of layouts for sliders, blogs and media galleries |
| Page Builder & Customisation | Elementor page builder coupled with WordPress Customizer to control colour scheme |
| Portfolio Features & Layouts | Slider Revolution included |
| Commerce Functionality | WooCommerce integrated with plenty of online store layouts |
| Image proofing & Protection | Provided with password protection and optional watermark addition |
| Newsletter & Contact Forms | Contact Form 7 |
| Additional Plugins & Functions | Google Font integration |
| Last Update | 19 May 2021 |
Get a quick peek into Musico’s page and demo today!
4. Grenada – Creative Ajax Portfolio Showcase Slider Theme
Sleek and stylish, Grenada is a great WordPress theme for creatives who favour using sliders to show off their projects and pieces.
The demo showcases a very cool monochromatic colour profile, alongside high quality images that show just what you’ll be expecting to get with this theme. Coupled with advanced typography and interactive text elements and fast load speeds so that user immersion isn’t broken by slow loading times, this theme will help in collating a very modern portfolio. The monochromatic profile is especially great for bringing out a contrast to more vibrant and detailed images, and can go with a fairly large variety of image collections.
Elements can have animations that have them fade in as you scroll through the site too, adding a fair amount of visual flair to captivate visitors. While not having much else in the field of functionality, this theme definitely does a good job as a portfolio showcase theme.
| Features | |
| Price | $39 |
| Number of Layouts | 2 demo styles to swap between light and dark modes. |
| Page Builder & Customisation | WP Bakery Page Builder with integrated theme options panel |
| Portfolio Features & Layouts | Slider Revolution included |
| Commerce Functionality | WooCommerce integrated with plenty of online store layouts |
| Image proofing & Protection | NIL |
| Newsletter & Contact Forms | NIL |
| Additional Plugins & Functions | Ajax Page transition animations, 500+ retina ready icons |
| Last Update | 19 June 2021 |
Take a look through Grenada’s features here and browse its demo!
5. Cinerama – A Theme for Movie Studios and Filmmakers
Tailored more for studios, directors and actors, Cinerama is a WordPress theme whose visuals-first approach in its design is sure to provide plenty of fun layouts for your portfolio and artistic project documentation
You’ll receive 10 stunning demos upon purchase of this WordPress theme – from film production company websites to individual videography portfolios. And as you dive through the theme’s demos, you’ll find that they present their imagery in a host of immensely captivating layouts; especially great for displaying visual artwork too.
You get to display your best works right at the homepage with hero sliders with brief blurbs about them laid out with stylish typography. The chronological filmography option is also great for arranging recent work or even merchandise in sliders too.
| Features | |
| Price | $75 |
| Number of Layouts | 10 Homepage demos & layouts for sliders, blogs and media galleries |
| Page Builder & Customisation | Elementor compatible, but comes packaged with premium WP Bakery. Admin Interface also provided for colour and font customisation |
| Portfolio Features & Layouts | Slider Revolution included with Shortcodes for portfolios ranging from lightbox carousels, galleries, masonry and infographics |
| Commerce Functionality | WooCommerce compatible with dropdown cart widget |
| Image proofing & Protection | NIL |
| Newsletter & Contact Forms | Contact Form 7 compatible |
| Additional Plugins & Functions | Widgets for social media feeds, 800+ Google Fonts |
| Last Update | 19 May 2021 |
Do take the time to get a closer look into the theme’s page and live demo!
6. Bard – Theatre and Performing Arts Theme
Bard is a premium and classy WordPress theme that isn’t too showy, giving your art and illustrations all the room they need to breath.
This particular WordPress theme was developed more for presenting and promoting theatre plays and performing arts events. However, much like the others we also found its galleries and portfolio features especially useful for other artists and their projects regardless of the craft
You’ll get to choose from a fairly modest 6 demos and a few variations of portfolio, gallery, and others. The theme’s demos for both acting troupes and individual performance artists can be easily repurposed to fit pages for creative agencies or studios and even single freelance artists and illustrators. The site even looks good on mobile devices due to its responsive code, ensuring that it’s accessible from all devices.
| Features | |
| Price | $79 |
| Number of Layouts | 6 home page demos & various inner pages for blogs and About Me pages. |
| Page Builder & Customisation | WP Bakery |
| Portfolio Features & Layouts | Slider Revolution & Shortcodes for sliders and grid galleries |
| Commerce Functionality | WooCommerce compatible |
| Image proofing & Protection | NIL |
| Newsletter & Contact Forms | Contact Form 7 compatible |
| Additional Plugins & Functions | Tickera Event ticketing plugin (useful if you’re running art lessons), Social media feed widgets, Pricing Table shortcode |
| Last Update | 19 May 2021 |
Why not learn more about what this theme can do for you here and through its live preview now!
7. Navian – Creative Multipurpose WordPress Theme
Another absolute powerhouse of a WordPress theme, Navian can be adapted to whatever purpose you need out of it; making it an especially versatile theme in the hands of creatives like artists and illustrators.
You’ll be receiving 185+ exclusive section templates and serves as a hub with dozens of multipurpose templates for plenty of different topic. We can’t emphasise the huge amount of utility you’ll be getting with this theme and any other multipurpose theme. While a custom demo made specifically for art and illustration isn’t always a guarantee, we do feel that these themes tend to offer the tools you need to at least hasten the process of building towards a more art-friendly layout. The portfolios that are included in the demo pages are also great for hosting images, and WooCommerce compatibility is nothing to scoff at if you intend to get started on making a store for your creative works and merchandise.
| Features | |
| Price | $16 |
| Number of Layouts | 15 demos, 85+ section templates with single-click installation process & 60+ custom visual elements |
| Page Builder & Customisation | WP Bakery |
| Portfolio Features & Layouts | Slider Revolution & Shortcodes for sliders and grid galleries |
| Commerce Functionality | WooCommerce compatible |
| Image proofing & Protection | NIL |
| Newsletter & Contact Forms | Contact Form 7 compatible |
| Additional Plugins & Functions | Yoast SEO, WooCommerce, Slider Revolution, 800+ Google Fonts, social media sharing functionality |
| Last Update | 20 May 2021 |
Take a stroll through the theme page and browse its demo!
8. CiyaShop – Art Gallery WooCommerce WordPress Theme
CiyaShop is another wonderful multi-purpose WordPress theme that can be used to build a variety of art and illustration online storefronts and more!
This one’s technically more tailored to setting up online stores; as you can kind of tell from the title of the WordPress theme. The theme’s demos are more designed to look like standard online stores. However, the packaged page builder does allow for changing up the theme so you can really add more visual flair to the overall look and feel of your site.
And its commerce functions are exceedingly comprehensive. with 260+ pre-made layouts, 40+ shortcodes, and various iterations for checkout pages and even hover styles, you have full creative room to make your site as well designed as your artistic works or even self-made handcrafted merchandise.
| Features | |
| Price | $29 |
| Number of Layouts | 90+ demos, 260+ inner page layouts, various header and footer customisation options |
| Page Builder & Customisation | WP Bakery & Elementor |
| Portfolio Features & Layouts | Slider Revolution & responsive carousels |
| Commerce Functionality | WooCommerce compatible |
| Image proofing & Protection | NIL |
| Newsletter & Contact Forms | Mailchimp, Contact Form 7 |
| Additional Plugins & Functions | Instagram Feed, wish list functions, countdowns |
| Last Update | 3 June 2021 |
Get a full rundown of what CiyaShop can do here and through its demo.
9. Musea – Art Gallery and Museum Theme
Musea is a very elegant and sophisticated WordPress template custom made for art galleries and museums; and what better theme to use to frame your artwork than this one?
Adorned with serif fonts and minimalist design, this WordPress theme is also incredibly functional. With the packaged WP Bakery page builder, you can either leave the already well-laid out portfolio pages as they are or even change them up with its intuitive drag & drop system. This can be done with the various blog layouts and event listings too. Also, it includes premium plugins like Slider Revolution and Tickera, plugins that may be used to handle things like art lesson sign ups and listings.
It even has a store layout for museums with merch stores that work great for artists that want o sell merchandise of things like fanart or zines compiling visual artwork. Pricing tables are provided that can be used to layout freelance services and mapping out commission details like revision and draft limits.
| Features | |
| Price | $75 |
| Number of Layouts | 6 demos |
| Page Builder & Customisation | WP Bakery & Elementor |
| Portfolio Features & Layouts | Slider Revolution & Portfolio layouts including masonry, grids, galleries and more |
| Commerce Functionality | WooCommerce compatible |
| Image proofing & Protection | NIL |
| Newsletter & Contact Forms | Custom contact form provided |
| Additional Plugins & Functions | Instagram and Instagram feed widgets, Pricing tables, Call to action buttons |
| Last Update | 8 April 2021 |
Make a solid first impression for your application showcase by checking out the theme page and live preview!
10. Sahel – An Elegant Multi-Concept Theme
Sahel is a very beautiful theme built to accommodate any particular site it’s used for, but its elegance and minimalist style lends it especially well to artists’ websites.
While this Word Press theme doesn’t quite have as much in the way of demos and inner page variety, the solid sense of style that this theme exudes shows that less really is more. The flat and simple design isn’t too plain, and provides a nice contrast to the true star of your website: your artwork and illustration projects. You get to pick from a rather modest amount of gallery options to frame your work neatly and nicely. And exploring the demo showcases the simple yet captivating animations that can be added to page elements as you scroll through and navigate the website. And don’t let its price fool you, as you’ll be paying both for a quality design as well as the premium WP Bakery page builder among other premium plugins that cost more when bought separately.
| Features | |
| Price | $79 |
| Number of Layouts | 12 contemporary homepage layouts, 8 inner pages |
| Page Builder & Customisation | WP Bakery |
| Portfolio Features & Layouts | Slider Revolution & Portfolio layouts including masonry, grids, galleries, scattered and more with optional infinite scrolling |
| Commerce Functionality | WooCommerce compatible |
| Image proofing & Protection | NIL |
| Newsletter & Contact Forms | Custom contact form provided with styling options |
| Additional Plugins & Functions | Plenty of font and icon packs including Font Awesome, Font Elegant, Linear and Ion. Social media feed widgets and various shortcode types included |
| Last Update | 14 May 2021 |
Install this elegant theme from its page or check out its demo here!
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