arena-mcp
A Model Context Protocol server for Are.na — let an AI assistant create channels, save blocks from any URL, browse, and search your visual boards.
Are.na is a quieter, human-curated alternative to Pinterest: channels are boards, blocks are the things you pin (images, links, embeds, or text). This server exposes those primitives as MCP tools so a model can build and fill boards for you.
Tools
| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
arena_me |
The authenticated user's profile (name, slug, tier, counts). |
arena_list_my_channels |
List channels you own (title, slug, visibility, block count, URL). |
arena_get_channel |
Fetch a channel by slug plus a page of its blocks. |
arena_create_channel |
Create a channel. visibility: public | closed | private. |
arena_add_block |
Add a block to a channel by slug — value is any URL (image/link/embed) or Markdown text. |
arena_search |
Full-text search. Requires an Are.na Premium subscription (returns a clear error otherwise). |
Setup
Requires Node 18+.
npm install
npm run build
Authentication
Create a personal access token at dev.are.na (New Application → the app page shows a personal access token) and expose it as an env var:
export ARENA_ACCESS_TOKEN="your-token"
A read-only token can browse; creating channels and blocks needs a write-scoped token.
Register with your MCP client
Claude Code / Claude Desktop (claude_desktop_config.json or .mcp.json):
{
"mcpServers": {
"arena": {
"command": "node",
"args": ["/absolute/path/to/arena-mcp/dist/index.js"],
"env": { "ARENA_ACCESS_TOKEN": "your-token" }
}
}
}
Notes on the Are.na API
- Built against the v3 REST API (
https://api.are.na/v3). The v2 API is being wound down; authenticated and write endpoints there now return401/410. - Channels use
visibility(public/closed/private). - Blocks are created at
POST /v3/blockswith{ value, channel_ids }. A URL is saved as a pending block and finishes processing (fetching the image/title) a moment later server-side. arena_searchhitsGET /v3/search, which Are.na gates behind Premium.
License
MIT
