Find answers to commonly asked questions about managing your public art collection in the collection management system.
Collection Management System Help Center
New to the Collection Management System
Are you new to the CMS? Watch the quick start guide video to learn how to add records and navigate the system. If you need written text, view the online manual.
Assigning Locations
The videos below provide steps to add locations and associate them with artwork records. For step-by-step instructions on relating new or existing objects to a new or existing location or media, view this guide.
Adding Media
The videos below provide steps to add locations and associate them with artwork records. For step-by-step instructions on relating new or existing objects to a new or existing location or media, view this guide.
Publish Records to the Public Engagement Portal
The videos below will provide you with steps to publish the records to the PAA front-end application.
Adding Person Records
The videos below will provide you with steps for adding person records and associating them with the object records. For step-by-step instructions on relating new or existing objects to a new or existing location or media, view this guide.
Search Records
The videos below will provide you with steps to search and filter records on the CMS.
Advanced Search Guide
FAQ's
Q. How do I publish artwork records to the Public Art Archive’s Public Engagement Portal?
A. Users can mark artworks as ready to be published on the Public Art Archive site. Watch the video or view the step-by-step guide to learn how to publish artworks and associated media.
Q. What are maker-supplied identifiers?
A. The maker-supplied identifier fields are available on the person authority record and allow collection administrators to track identity information (such as preferred gender, race, preferred pronouns, etc) about artists and other collaborators. To learn how to use these fields, watch this video.
Q. How do I manage my terms list?
A. A term list is a limited set of terms arranged as a simple alphabetical list. Term lists are used to describe aspects of objects or entities that have a limited number of possibilities. Term lists generally appear as drop-down option lists in your CMS. Term list management allows the user to add and remove terms from a list, set the default value, and edit the status of terms within a list. View the step-by-step guide or watch our help video.
Q. Where can I save commissioning information and documents?
A. The Acquisition record provides all the relevant fields to document and track commissioning activities and budgeting information. CMS admins can upload contracts, meeting notes, and other documentation and relate them directly to the Acquisition record for later reference.
Q. How do I document maintenance records and condition checks in my CMS?
A. The Condition Check record type in the CMS allows admins to document the condition of artworks and track changes and maintenance needs over time. Condition Check records can be used for individual objects or groups of objects. CMS users can relate images, documentation, and other media references to these records.
Q. What if an artwork is temporary or no longer on view?
A. The CMS allows admins to designate view dates so that artworks no longer on view in public space are tagged as such on the Public Art Archive. This feature makes it easy for users to see what artworks are currently available for viewing and what’s no longer on view.
Q. How do I use the group records?
A. Group records can be used to cull together a series of artworks and/or procedural records for any purpose. To learn how to use the group records, watch this video. Learn about the group checklist by watching this video.
Q. What types of media files can I store in my CMS?
A. The CMS can accommodate all types of media files, including images, videos, audio files, PDFs, documents, spreadsheets, and external URLs. Use the media handling record to add files and/or links and then relate those to the appropriate artworks and/or procedural records.
Account Management
This section will guide you on how to manage your account and user permissions.