diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 8c70996..676333d 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -13,6 +13,18 @@ Pre-v1.0.0 tags followed the pi npm version (`v{pi_version}[letter]`).
 
 ## Unreleased
 
+### Added
+
+- **`dot-watch` helper** (`/usr/local/bin/dot-watch`) — auto-rerenders a
+  Graphviz `.dot` file to PNG on every save via mtime polling (no
+  `inotify` dependency). pi-studio renders Mermaid natively but has no
+  DOT renderer; since its markdown preview displays local PNG/JPG/GIF/WEBP
+  images, this closes the loop for Graphviz: edit `.dot` → `dot-watch`
+  regenerates `<name>.png` → Studio *refresh-from-disk* shows the update.
+  `graphviz` was already in the base image, so no new package. Baked into
+  `Dockerfile.base` following the `studio-expose` pattern; documented in
+  the README Studio section.
+
 ## v1.1.0 — 2026-06-10
 
 ### Added — `:latest-studio` variant
diff --git a/Dockerfile.base b/Dockerfile.base
index 57a5e0f..191d03c 100644
--- a/Dockerfile.base
+++ b/Dockerfile.base
@@ -48,6 +48,8 @@ ENV DEBIAN_FRONTEND=noninteractive
 #                  preview/export pipelines and broadly useful for any
 #                  agent-driven document workflow. ~200 MB.
 #   graphviz     — `dot` rendering for many diagram tools. ~10 MB.
+#                  See the bundled `dot-watch` helper for live .dot -> PNG
+#                  re-render (handy with pi-studio's image preview).
 #   imagemagick  — image conversion / resizing for thumbnails, etc. ~50 MB.
 #   yq           — YAML-aware companion to jq.
 #   socat        — TCP relay. Powers `studio-expose`, which bridges
@@ -436,10 +438,12 @@ COPY rootfs/home/developer/.inputrc      /etc/skel-devbox/.inputrc
 # ── Entrypoint ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 COPY rootfs/usr/local/lib/pi-devbox/ /usr/local/lib/pi-devbox/
 COPY rootfs/usr/local/bin/studio-expose /usr/local/bin/studio-expose
+COPY rootfs/usr/local/bin/dot-watch /usr/local/bin/dot-watch
 COPY entrypoint.sh /usr/local/bin/entrypoint.sh
 COPY entrypoint-user.sh /usr/local/bin/entrypoint-user.sh
 RUN chmod +x /usr/local/bin/entrypoint.sh /usr/local/bin/entrypoint-user.sh \
     /usr/local/bin/studio-expose \
+    /usr/local/bin/dot-watch \
     /usr/local/lib/pi-devbox/*.sh 2>/dev/null || true
 
 # Start as root — entrypoint adjusts UID/GID then drops to developer
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 43dd6ec..e7b62e5 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -276,6 +276,26 @@ Assuming the compose file publishes `127.0.0.1:8765:8765` (see method B):
 > which is **not** in `-studio` (only the planned `-studio-tex`). HTML
 > export, KaTeX, Mermaid, and all REPL features work without it.
 
+### Graphviz diagrams in Studio: `dot-watch`
+
+pi-studio renders **Mermaid** natively but has **no Graphviz/DOT renderer**.
+Its markdown preview *does* render local image links (`.png`/`.jpg`/`.gif`/
+`.webp`), so the workflow for Graphviz is: write a `.dot` file, render it to
+PNG with `dot`, and preview the PNG (directly, or embedded in a markdown
+file). The bundled **`dot-watch`** helper automates the re-render so edits
+show up on Studio's *refresh-from-disk*:
+
+```bash
+dot-watch graph.dot              # dot engine, 150 dpi -> graph.png
+dot-watch graph.dot neato 200    # pick layout engine + dpi
+```
+
+It polls the file's mtime (no `inotify` dependency) and regenerates
+`<name>.png` on every save, printing timestamped status and indenting any
+DOT syntax errors instead of crashing. Then in Studio: open the PNG (or a
+`.md` that embeds it) and hit **refresh-from-disk** after each edit.
+Note: SVG is **not** in Studio's local-image-link allowlist — use PNG.
+
 ## docker-compose.yml — basic shape
 
 ```yaml
diff --git a/rootfs/usr/local/bin/dot-watch b/rootfs/usr/local/bin/dot-watch
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..0b1dd23
--- /dev/null
+++ b/rootfs/usr/local/bin/dot-watch
@@ -0,0 +1,59 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+# dot-watch — auto-rerender a graphviz .dot file to PNG on every save.
+#
+# WHY THIS EXISTS
+#   pi-studio renders mermaid natively but has no graphviz/DOT renderer.
+#   Its markdown preview DOES render local image links (.png/.jpg/.gif/.webp),
+#   and the editor offers "refresh from disk". This helper closes the loop:
+#   edit a .dot file -> dot-watch regenerates <name>.png -> hit refresh in
+#   Studio to see the update. Uses mtime polling (no inotify dependency,
+#   which isn't in the trixie-slim base).
+#
+# USAGE
+#   dot-watch <file.dot> [layout] [dpi]
+#     layout: dot|neato|fdp|circo|twopi  (default: dot)
+#     dpi:    output resolution           (default: 150)
+#   env: DOT_WATCH_INTERVAL=<seconds>     poll interval (default: 1)
+#
+# EXAMPLES
+#   dot-watch /workspace/graph.dot
+#   dot-watch graph.dot neato 200
+
+set -euo pipefail
+
+SRC="${1:?usage: dot-watch <file.dot> [layout] [dpi]}"
+LAYOUT="${2:-dot}"
+DPI="${3:-150}"
+
+[[ -f "$SRC" ]] || { echo "error: no such file: $SRC" >&2; exit 1; }
+command -v "$LAYOUT" >/dev/null || { echo "error: layout engine '$LAYOUT' not found" >&2; exit 1; }
+
+OUT="${SRC%.dot}.png"
+INTERVAL="${DOT_WATCH_INTERVAL:-1}"   # seconds between polls
+ERRLOG="$(mktemp -t dot-watch.XXXXXX.err)"
+trap 'rm -f "$ERRLOG"' EXIT
+
+render() {
+    if "$LAYOUT" -Tpng -Gdpi="$DPI" "$SRC" -o "$OUT" 2> "$ERRLOG"; then
+        printf '[%s] rendered -> %s\n' "$(date +%H:%M:%S)" "$OUT"
+    else
+        printf '[%s] DOT error:\n' "$(date +%H:%M:%S)"
+        sed 's/^/    /' "$ERRLOG"
+    fi
+}
+
+# portable mtime (GNU stat, fallback to BSD stat)
+mtime() { stat -c %Y "$1" 2>/dev/null || stat -f %m "$1" 2>/dev/null; }
+
+echo "watching $SRC ($LAYOUT, ${DPI}dpi) -> $OUT  [Ctrl-C to stop]"
+render
+last="$(mtime "$SRC")"
+while true; do
+    sleep "$INTERVAL"
+    [[ -f "$SRC" ]] || continue
+    now="$(mtime "$SRC")"
+    if [[ "$now" != "$last" ]]; then
+        last="$now"
+        render
+    fi
+done