chessimage is a Java library that generates chess board images from FEN (Forsyth-Edwards Notation). This library offers customizable themes and board dimensions with high-quality visualization.

• Chess board rendering based on FEN notation
• Customizable themes with pre-defined options (Green and Brown themes included)
• Adjustable square sizes
• Integrated chess coordinates (A-H, 1-8)
• High-quality rendering with anti-aliasing

• Java 17 or higher

You can import this library into your project using JitPack.io. This allows you to manage the dependency through Maven or Gradle.

Add the JitPack repository to your pom.xml:

<repositories>
    <repository>
        <id>jitpack.io</id>
        <url>https://jitpack.io</url>
    </repository>
</repositories>

Then add the dependency:

<dependency>
    <groupId>com.github.alexandreroman</groupId>
    <artifactId>chessimage</artifactId>
    <version>1.0.0</version>
</dependency>

Add the JitPack repository to your root build.gradle:

allprojects {
  repositories {
    maven { url 'https://jitpack.io' }
  }
}

Then add the dependency:

dependencies {
    implementation 'com.github.alexandreroman:chessimage:1.0.0'
}

This will use the stable 1.0.0 release. If you want to use a different version, replace 1.0.0 with another release tag or commit hash.

// Create a renderer with the default green theme and standard square size (80px)
ChessRenderer renderer = new ChessRenderer();

// Initial position in FEN notation
String fen = "rnbqkbnr/pppppppp/8/8/8/8/PPPPPPPP/RNBQKBNR w KQkq - 0 1";

// Generate and save the image
try (FileOutputStream out = new FileOutputStream("chess_position.png")) {
    renderer.render(fen, out);
}

// Create a renderer with the brown theme
ChessRenderer renderer = new ChessRenderer(ChessThemeLibrary.BROWN_THEME);

// Custom FEN position
String fen = "r1bqk2r/pppp1ppp/2n2n2/2b1p3/2B1P3/2N2N2/PPPP1PPP/R1BQK2R w KQkq - 0 1";

// Generate and save the image
try (FileOutputStream out = new FileOutputStream("custom_position.png")) {
    renderer.render(fen, out);
}

// Create a renderer with the green theme and 60px squares
ChessRenderer renderer = new ChessRenderer(ChessThemeLibrary.GREEN_THEME, 60);

// Generate and save the image
try (FileOutputStream out = new FileOutputStream("small_board.png")) {
    renderer.render(fen, out);
}

To create a new theme, create a new instance of the ChessTheme record:

// Define a blue theme with custom colors
ChessTheme blueTheme = new ChessTheme(
    Color.decode("#E8EBF0"),  // Light square color (light blue-gray)
    Color.decode("#7389AE")   // Dark square color (medium blue)
);

// Create a renderer with the custom theme
ChessRenderer renderer = new ChessRenderer(blueTheme, 70);

FEN (Forsyth-Edwards Notation) is a standard for describing a particular chess position. An example of FEN notation for the initial position is:

rnbqkbnr/pppppppp/8/8/8/8/PPPPPPPP/RNBQKBNR w KQkq - 0 1

Where:

• Letters represent pieces (uppercase for white, lowercase for black)
  • r = rook, n = knight, b = bishop, q = queen, k = king, p = pawn
• Numbers represent consecutive empty squares
• Ranks are separated by forward slashes (/)
• The part after the first space contains additional information (turn to play, castling possibilities, etc.)

Contributions are always welcome!

Feel free to open issues & send PR.

Copyright © 2025 Broadcom, Inc. or its affiliates.

This project is licensed under the Apache Software License version 2.0.