SKILL: Vector Art APIs

Follow the Puppet Master architecture: assign each asset category a dedicated source, then composite and animate in-browser.

Architecture Overview

Source Reference

1. DiceBear — Actors (BEST FOR CHARACTERS)

Deterministic avatar generation. Same seed = same character across scenes.

Base: https://api.dicebear.com/9.x/
SVG:  GET https://api.dicebear.com/9.x/{style}/svg?seed={name}&{params}

Key styles for storytelling:

• open-peeps — hand-drawn humans, supports pose + face params (RECOMMENDED)
• avataaars — cartoon faces
• micah — minimal illustrated characters

Open Peeps params:

face=      scared | happy | sad | rage | explaining | ...
body=      standing | sitting | ...
seed=      any string — use character name for consistency

Example:

https://api.dicebear.com/9.x/open-peeps/svg?seed=Alice&face=happy&body=standing

Docs: https://www.dicebear.com/how-to-use/http-api/

2. Iconify — Objects & Props (BEST FOR SEARCHABLE ASSETS)

REST API, CORS-open, no auth. 200k+ SVGs across 100+ sets.

Search:    GET https://api.iconify.design/search?query={term}&limit=10
Fetch SVG: GET https://api.iconify.design/{prefix}/{name}.svg
List sets: GET https://api.iconify.design/collections

Search response fields: icons[] — each is "{prefix}:{name}"

Illustration-grade sets (use for visual consistency):

• flat-color-icons — colorful objects
• noto-emoji — expressive emoji-style
• openmoji — open emoji
• twemoji — Twitter emoji style

Example flow:

const res = await fetch("https://api.iconify.design/search?query=tree&limit=5");
const { icons } = await res.json(); // e.g. ["flat-color-icons:tree"]
const [prefix, name] = icons[0].split(":");
const svg = await fetch(`https://api.iconify.design/${prefix}/${name}.svg`).then((r) => r.text());

3. unDraw — Scene Backgrounds

High-quality MIT-licensed scene illustrations (office, team, error states, etc.).

No live search API. Use a static slug index:

• Community slug list: https://github.com/sw-yx/undraw-urls
• NPM: undraw-js or react-undraw-illustrations

URL pattern (once you have a slug):

https://undraw.co/illustrations/{slug}   ← browse
SVG direct: not publicly CDN'd — use NPM package or embed via react-undraw

Agent strategy: maintain a curated keyword→slug map for your narrative's scene types (e.g., "office" → "working_late", "error" → "fixing_bugs").

4. Openverse — General SVG Search

Searches across open-licensed media including SVGs from Wikimedia, Flickr, etc.

Search: GET https://api.openverse.org/v1/images/?q={query}&extension=svg

Response fields: url, thumbnail, license, license_url, creator, source

Notes:

• No auth for basic use; register for higher rate limits
• License accuracy not guaranteed — verify license field before use
• Filter: only use cc0, pdm, by, or by-sa licenses

5. OpenClipart — Public Domain SVGs

All CC0. Native SVG. Style is inconsistent but good for prototyping.

Search: GET https://openclipart.org/search/?query={term}&format=json

Docs: https://openclipart.org/developers

6. Wikimedia Commons — Mixed License SVGs

Large archive; must handle attribution carefully.

Search: GET https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/api.php
  ?action=query
  &generator=search
  &gsrsearch=filetype:svg {query}
  &gsrlimit=10
  &prop=imageinfo
  &iiprop=url|extmetadata
  &format=json

Key response fields: imageinfo[].url, extmetadata.LicenseShortName, extmetadata.Artist

Always store attribution. Prefer CC0/PD results.

7. Simple Icons — Brand Logos Only

Fetch: https://cdn.simpleicons.org/{slug}.svg

Slugs match lowercase brand names (e.g., github, openai, typescript). No auth, no search needed.

8. Noun Project — Requires Auth

Large library (~5M icons), full search API.

Search: GET https://api.thenounproject.com/v2/icon?query={term}
Auth:   OAuth 1.0
Docs:   https://api.thenounproject.com/documentation.html

Free tier: public domain icons only. Returns attribution string — must display it.

Asset Manifest (Required for All Downloaded Assets)

Before using any fetched SVG in rendering, freeze it locally with a manifest entry:

{
  "id": "unique-local-id",
  "source": "iconify",
  "source_url": "https://api.iconify.design/flat-color-icons/tree.svg",
  "license": "MIT",
  "creator": "",
  "sha256": "...",
  "tags": ["tree", "nature", "plant"]
}

Animation Stack

GSAP (industry standard, free for most uses):

gsap.to("#character", { x: 400, duration: 2, ease: "power2.inOut" });
gsap.timeline().to("#actor", { y: -20, duration: 0.3 }).to("#actor", { y: 0, duration: 0.3 });

anime.js (lighter alternative, fully open source):

anime({ targets: "#character", translateX: 400, duration: 2000, easing: "easeInOutQuad" });

Key principle: Animate entire SVG groups (<g> elements) via translate/scale rather than trying to manipulate internal paths — external SVGs often have unpredictable internal structure.

Decision Flow for Agents

Need a CHARACTER?    → DiceBear open-peeps (seed=name, set face/body params)
Need a SCENE/BG?    → unDraw (keyword→slug map) or Openverse (filter license=cc0)
Need an OBJECT/PROP?→ Iconify search → pick flat-color-icons set for consistency
Need a BRAND LOGO?  → Simple Icons CDN
Need ANYTHING ELSE? → Openverse search → verify license → freeze to manifest
Animating?          → GSAP timeline; target <g> wrappers; translate whole elements
Style consistency?  → Commit to ONE Iconify set for all non-character assets

CORS & Practical Notes

• CORS-open (no proxy needed): Iconify, DiceBear, Simple Icons, Openverse
• May need proxy: Wikimedia, OpenClipart (test first)
• Requires backend: Noun Project (OAuth), Pixabay vectorURL field
• Inline SVGs into the DOM so GSAP/anime.js can target their elements directly; don't use <img src=".svg"> if you need to animate internal parts