Folders and Attachments: structure, use, and management

Introduction

Folders allow you to include additional content within your records, in addition to the standard fields provided by the system. They are available in all the main sections of Artshell— Artworks, Artists, Contacts Events—and offer a structured space for adding in-depth text, documentation, images, files, and other multimedia materials.

With Folders, you can customize your database and organize your information in a neat and consistent manner, keeping the main content of record separate record supplementary information. This structure ensures clearer data management and a professional presentation, even when exporting or sharing data.

Below are some examples of folders for the corresponding records:

Artworks Artists Contacts Events

Artworks

In the Artworks section, Artworks create folders to organize documents related to Artworks, such as condition reports, certificates, images, technical files, or supplementary materials.

Artists

In the Artists section, you can create folders to organize documents such as extended biographies, critical essays, press reviews, representation contracts, administrative documents, curatorial materials, or presentation dossiers.

Contacts

In the Contacts " section, Contacts create folders to organize legal documents such as invoices, loan agreements, and powers of attorney, or other documents containing personal information.

Events

In the Events section, you can create folders to organize press releases, the event budget, reports for sponsors or public agencies, contracts with artists, speakers, or partners, the event timeline, and floor plans of the venue.

Creating Folders

Folders can be created from two main areas of Artshell:

1. From the settings panel

If this is your first time using Folders, we recommend that you set them up in advance in the Settings Panel. That way, when you're designing your database, you can create all the main folders you expect to need and have them ready to use when you're ready to associate them with the various records.

After deciding which folders to create (based in part on the examples shown in the Introduction), go to the desired section and click Add New to create one.

Finally, click Save to confirm.

2. Within individual records

If you prefer to build your archive gradually, you can create folders directly within individual records, in the Artworks, Artists, Contacts Events sections. This approach is useful when you don’t need to define an overall structure from the start, but want to add folders as needs arise over the course of your work.

Specifically:

• from the Details tab — in the upper-left corner of the record;

• or by clicking the " Add Folder + " button when you're in record edit mode.

From here, you can create new folders for that specific record the + icon, typing the name of the new folder in the search bar , and clicking "Create."

Once you've created a folder, you'll see some information:

But first, let’s take a closer look at what attachments are.

How the Folders Are Organized: Attachments

Folders consist of attachments, which represent individual units of content. To create a new attachment, click on the folder and then click the + to the right of the search bar. In the image below, you can see an empty attachment inside the "Publications" folder.

Each attachment includes a title, a main text field, the option to enter a date (day, month, and year), and a multilingual menu that allows you to fill in the content in English and French as well, if you deem it necessary.

Place the cursor in the text field Start typing…, an editor with three icons appears at the bottom, allowing you to format the text and add multimedia elements, such as images, videos, files, a separator line, or an image slider. To learn how to upload files, images, and videos, readthe article on the Medialibrary.

If you select a portion of text, an additional formatting menu will open, allowing you to change its color, style, and alignment, or to insert a link.

Once you've finished making changes, click Save to confirm.

Once saved, you can manage the attachment using the icons at the top:

The padlock icon is particularly important: a locked attachment (closed padlock) will not be displayed when the record exported or shared. This allows you to keep private content or content intended for internal use only separate from content intended for sharing. You can learn more by reading the article about the padlock feature.

Clicking the X will take you back to the list of attachments in the folder.

Advanced Folder Management

When you enter a section, you can view all existing folders, search for them using the search bar, or create a new one by clicking " Add New."

If you're creating a new folder, enter the name in the primary language you use on Artshell and in all other available languages if you plan to share the contents of your folders with an international audience.

Finally, you can usethe hand icon to drag and drop folders to set the order in which they will appear in records. The order set here will be reflected in the system's display.

Conclusions

Folders are a flexible and powerful tool for organizing additional content within your records, helping you maintain a neat and easily manageable structure.

When used correctly, you can enrich Artworks, Artists, Contacts Events with in-depth materials, documentation, and multimedia content, without compromising the clarity of the main information. Careful and well-planned management of Folders—both at the individual record level record through the Settings Panel—allows you to maintain full control over shared or exported content, ensuring a professional presentation that is always consistent with your needs.