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🖼 Online Viewing Room 2.0

Showcase artworks in a customizable, stylish space—OVR 2.0 gives you full control over layout, design, and displayed info.

Kalila Richards avatar
Written by Kalila Richards
Updated over 2 weeks ago

Introducing Online Viewing Room 2.0

Design-driven, flexible, and built to impress

We’ve rebuilt Online Viewing Rooms from the ground up to give you full creative control over how you present artwork digitally. With Online Viewing Room 2.0, you can now tailor the look and feel of your viewing rooms with new layouts, banners, editable text, and detailed artwork views—all in real time.

Whether you're creating a sleek, minimal grid or an editorial-style showcase, OVR 2.0 is designed to help you tell the story of your artworks, your way.


✨ What’s New in OVR 2.0

  • Live Editor Preview: Instantly see your changes as you design

  • Banner Image Support: Add stunning visuals to set the tone

  • Editable Text Blocks: Customize headings, descriptions, and more

  • Enhanced Artwork Details: Show provenance, history, publications, and other key information

  • Grid Layouts & Custom Styling: Choose how your artworks appear—1, 2, 3, or 4 across



🚀 How to Create and Customize Your OVR

Step 1: Start a New OVR

You can now launch Online Viewing Room 2.0 directly from its own tab!

  • Navigate to the OVR tab in the left-side toolbar.

  • On the OVR Links page, click Create an OVR in the top right corner.

You can also create a new OVR from any Inventory List, Exhibition, or Fair. Just go to the relevant page and click the OVR button in the top-right corner.

Once the Create an OVR button is selected, you’ll see a pop-up where you can:

  • Select an Inventory list (Exhibition, Fair, or List)

  • Name your OVR link

The URL slug will automatically populate based on your link name.


Step 2: 🛠 Customize Your OVR Design & Settings Panel

After clicking Create, you’ll be taken into the OVR 2.0 editor, which opens with two panels:

On the right-hand side, you’ll see the full Design Settings Panel, where you can personalize every part of your OVR.

  • Left (section 1): A real-time preview of your OVR

  • Right (section 2): Design and settings panel

Changes are not live until you hit Save—this gives you control to fine-tune everything before sharing.


Let's take a deeper look into each menu in the Design Settings Panel!

⚙️ Under the General section, you can:

  • Edit the Link name

  • See the Inventory List connected to the OVR

  • Copy the full OVR Link for sharing

  • Choose whether to:

    • Ask for email address on entry

    • Show inquire button next to each artwork


🖼 Customize Your OVR Banner (Header)

The Header section lets you transform the top of your OVR into a visually striking introduction. This is where you can add a banner image, adjust layout settings, and set the tone for the entire viewing room.

Here’s what you can do:

  • Display Banner – Toggle this on to show the banner area at the top.

  • Banner Height – Use the slider to adjust how much space the banner takes up (measured in % of screen height).

  • Cover Image – Upload your banner image directly here by dragging a file or clicking to browse.

✨ Enhance the visual impact with design options:

  • Enable Scroll Effect – Adds subtle animation when scrolling the banner into view.

  • Overlay – Enable this to layer a semi-transparent color over the banner image.

  • Color Overlay – Choose any color to use for the overlay.

  • Opacity – Control how strong or subtle the overlay effect appears.

📝 Text Placement Controls:

  • Horizontal & Vertical Text Alignment – Choose how the title and subtitle align across your banner (left, center, right and top, middle, bottom).

  • Display Date – Optionally toggle this on to display the exhibition date.

💡 Tip: If you haven’t uploaded a cover image yet, the banner area will remain grey—perfect for testing your title layout and overlays before finalizing.


🎨 Layout & Background: Set the Mood and Structure

The Layout Background panel lets you define the overall look and structure of your Online Viewing Room. Here's how each setting works:

Background Color

Change the background color of your OVR to match your gallery's brand aesthetic or the tone of your exhibition. Click the color dot to open the color picker and preview your selection in real time.

Grid Columns

Choose how many artworks appear per row — 1, 2, 3, or 4 columns. This is a great way to control how spacious or dense your layout feels.

✨ Tip: If you're showcasing large works or want to highlight a few pieces, 1–2 columns work beautifully. For a fuller, fair-style wall display, try 3 or 4.

Artwork Alignment

Choose whether to align artworks to the left or center of the page.

ℹ️ Note: Artwork alignment options only apply when you're using a 2-column layout.

Everything you change is instantly reflected in the live preview on the left. Just don’t forget to hit Publish when you're happy with your updates!


🖼️ Artwork Settings: Control What Viewers See

The Artwork Settings panel lets you fine-tune the information that appears beneath each artwork (caption) and within its expanded detail view. This is a great way to highlight only the most relevant context for your audience.

Show in caption

Choose what displays directly under each artwork on the main OVR page:

  • Show price – Display the current price of the work.

  • Show prices when sold – Include prices even for sold works.

  • Show status indicator – Add a visual status tag (e.g., "Available" or "On Hold").

Show in detail view

When a viewer clicks into a work, this information can be displayed:

  • Provenance – Add ownership history to support transparency.

  • Exhibition History – Show where the work has been exhibited.

  • Collections – Highlight any significant public or private collections.

  • Literature – Reference where the work has been published.

  • Publications – Note catalogs, articles, or books that include the work.

  • Credits – Display contributors or collaborators involved.

✨ Example of Detail View in Action

Once your selections are made, clicking into an artwork reveals the expanded detail view. In the example below, we’ve enabled Provenance, Exhibition History, and Literature—giving viewers deeper insight into the artwork’s journey, public showings, and scholarly references. This is a great way to build trust, provide context, and support the value of each piece.

✨ Enable only what’s relevant — you’re in control of the depth of information shared.

Display Custom Fields

Have additional metadata that doesn’t fall under standard fields? Use Custom Fields to include them!

  • Click the dropdown to select from your available custom fields.

  • Click Apply Custom Fields to confirm and update the artwork detail view.


🎨 Text Formatting

In the Text Formatting panel, you can customize the look and feel of your OVR's text elements to match your gallery’s tone and style. There are separate controls for:

  • Header: This is the title at the top of your OVR. Choose the font family, size, weight (bold), and style (italic) to suit your design.

  • Subheading: Add supportive context under your title with its own font and styling settings.

  • Body: This controls the default font for the rest of your page—including captions, descriptions, and additional details.

You can adjust the font color, size, weight, and italicization for each section individually.

💡 Tip: Want even more customization? Click "Add custom fonts" at the bottom of the panel to upload your own typefaces. Just be sure your font file is web-safe and properly licensed.

Learn how to upload your fonts here.


📄 Documents & Installations

This section lets you add contextual materials and installation images to your Online Viewing Room.

Show Documents Tab

This is the place to upload and share PDFs, press releases, essays, or any other files you’d like to make available to visitors.

When enabled, a Documents tab will appear at the top of your OVR next to the Artworks tab.

⚠️ Note: The position of the Documents tab is fixed and will always appear above the artworks.

Show Installation Views

Toggle this on to showcase installation images from your gallery, fair booth, or exhibition space.

You can choose where installation images appear:

  • Top – Displays the installation views just below your OVR banner.

  • Bottom – Displays the installation views at the end of your OVR.

  • In Tab – Adds installation views to their own tab next to Documents and Artworks.

Use installation views to provide scale, context, and ambiance to your presentation!


🔲 Top Bar Buttons in the OVR Editor

Once you've customized your Online Viewing Room, the top bar gives you quick access to actions that help preview, finalize, or reuse your setup:

🔙 Back

Exit the OVR editor and return to the previous page. Don't worry—unsaved changes will prompt a warning so nothing gets lost.

👁️ Preview

Opens a new tab showing exactly what your OVR will look like to clients. Use this to review formatting, layout, and image placement before going live.

🎨 Save Styles

Click this to save your current OVR styling (fonts, colors, layout choices) as a template. This makes it easier to reuse your custom branding across future OVRs.

🔗 Copy

Copies the URL link for your OVR so you can easily share it with clients.

Publish

Make your OVR live and ready to share! Once published, the OVR link becomes active and can be sent out to clients.


🖥️ Navigating the OVR Dashboard: All, Active, and Disabled Links

Once you’ve created one or more Online Viewing Rooms, the OVR tab becomes your central hub to track, manage, and organize them. Here’s how each section works:

🔗 All Links

This is your master list of every OVR ever created within your account.

In the All Links tab, you can view:

  • List Name – Title of the inventory list associated with the OVR

  • Link Name – Public-facing name of the Online Viewing Room

  • Visits – The number of times the OVR link has been viewed

  • Creator – The teammate who created the OVR

  • Last Visited – The most recent time a visitor accessed the link

💡 Use the search bar to quickly find a specific OVR by name.

On the right, you’ll also see a Copy Link button to grab the OVR URL instantly, and a three-dot menu for additional actions.

⋮ More Options Menu

Click the three-dot icon on the right-hand side of any OVR row to reveal more link-specific actions:

  • 👁️ Preview
    Open the OVR in a new tab to preview exactly what your clients will see.

  • ⚙️ Edit Settings
    Jump directly into the customization panel to update your OVR’s design or layout.

  • 🚫 Disable Link
    Temporarily deactivate the link so it’s no longer viewable by the public. You can always re-enable it later from the Disabled Links tab.

  • ❌ Delete Link
    Permanently remove the OVR link from your account. This action cannot be undone.

💡 Use this menu to quickly update, pause, or clean up your viewing rooms without navigating away from the dashboard.


🔄 Managing Active and Disabled OVR Links

Once you've created your OVR, you can easily manage your links from the OVR tab in the left toolbar.

✅ Active Links

The Active Links tab displays all OVRs that are currently live and viewable via their shareable URL.

Each entry shows:

  • The list the OVR is tied to (Exhibition, Fair, or Custom List)

  • The link name and creator

  • Number of visits

  • When it was last visited

You’ll also see two options to the right:

  • 🔗 Copy Link – Quickly copies the public URL so you can share it with collectors or team members.

  • Menu – Click to open more options:

    • Preview: Opens the OVR in a new tab.

    • Edit Settings: Reopen the OVR Design Panel to make changes.

    • Disable Link: Temporarily unpublish the OVR.

    • Delete Link: Permanently delete the OVR from your account.

🚫 Disabled Links

The Disabled Links tab shows OVRs that have been turned off. These links are no longer viewable, but all design and content remain saved.

From this view, you can:

  • Re-enable a link to make it public again

  • Preview or continue editing an existing OVR

  • Permanently delete it

This makes it easy to archive viewing rooms you’re no longer using—without losing any of your work.


📊 Viewing Visit Analytics

You can view detailed engagement metrics by tapping the Visits number on any OVR listed in the All Links, Active Links, or Disabled Links tabs.

This opens a detailed breakdown of visitor activity so you can better understand how viewers are interacting with your Online Viewing Room.

At a glance

At the top of the panel, you'll see high-level stats for the selected OVR:

  • Total visits – The total number of visitors

  • Total visit length – Combined time spent across all visits

  • Artwork views – How many individual artworks were viewed

  • Document views – Total number of document interactions

Visitor details

Below, you’ll see a list of each session, including:

  • Device & Email – Identifies whether the user visited on desktop or mobile. If the user is known (saved in ARTERNAL), their email will appear.

  • Time of Visit – The exact time each visit occurred

  • Visit Length – How long the visitor stayed on the page

  • Viewed Images – Number of artworks viewed (out of total)

  • Viewed Docs – Number of documents viewed (out of total)

  • Location – Geolocation based on the viewer's IP address

💡 This panel is a great way to track collector interest and follow up with SmartMail if someone has spent time engaging with the room.


👁️‍🗨️ Viewing a Visitor’s Activity

Clicking on a specific visit in the Activity tab opens a more detailed breakdown of that session. This gives you insight into exactly what a viewer engaged with inside your OVR.

What You’ll See:

  • Artwork thumbnails – A preview of each artwork the viewer clicked on

  • View duration – How long they spent looking at each artwork

💡 This view is especially helpful for sales follow-up. If you see that a client lingered on a specific piece, you can use SmartMail to send a personalized message referencing that interest.


🖼️ Artwork Views

The Artwork Views tab gives you a clear summary of which artworks were viewed, how long they were viewed, and how many visitors viewed each one.

What You’ll See:

  • Thumbnail preview of each work in your OVR

  • Time spent on each work,

  • Number of views for each artwork

This makes it easy to:

  • Identify which works drew the most attention

  • Spot trends across multiple visitors

  • Follow up with leads who engaged with a particular piece

Whether you're preparing for a sales conversation or reviewing the performance of an OVR, this section gives you a fast, visual way to measure interest at the artwork level.


📄 Document Views

The Document Views tab shows you how many times each document in your OVR has been opened and viewed.

What You’ll See:

  • A preview icon of the uploaded document

  • The file name

  • A view count showing how many visitors opened it

This view helps you:

  • Understand which supplemental materials (e.g. checklists, essays, press releases) were of interest

  • Track engagement beyond artwork views

  • Measure the effectiveness of supporting documentation

Whether you're sharing additional context or logistical details, this tab ensures you're in the loop on who’s interacting with your documents.


Need to make a quick update?

You can still access key options from this view—Copy Link, Preview, Edit, or open the ⋮ menu to disable or delete your OVR.


🎉 You’re all set!

With Online Viewing Room 2.0, you have complete control over how you present your artworks—visually, informatively, and with impact. Whether you’re customizing the layout, formatting text, or tracking visitor engagement, OVR 2.0 gives you the tools to create a compelling digital experience from start to finish.

If you have any questions or want to explore best practices, our team is here to help!


Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q: Can I still create an OVR from a list, exhibition, or fair?A: Yes! You can start an OVR from any Inventory List, Exhibition, or Fair by clicking the OVR button in the top-right corner of the page.

Q: Will my changes go live immediately?A: Not until you click Publish. You can safely make edits and preview your OVR before publishing it live.

Q: Can I duplicate the style of one OVR and use it for another?A: Yes! Use the Save Styles in the OVR editor to save your current settings to a new OVR.

Q: Who can view the OVR?A: Anyone with the link! You also have the option to require email entry for added control.

Q: What happens when I disable an OVR?A: Disabling an OVR removes public access to the link without deleting the content. You can re-enable it at any time from the Disabled Links tab.

Q: Can I track who viewed the OVR?A: Yes! You’ll see visitor info, time spent, artworks and documents viewed, and even their location.

Q: Can I customize the font and layout of my OVR?A: Definitely. OVR 2.0 gives you full control over banner settings, background color, grid layout, artwork alignment, fonts, and more.

Q: Can I reorder artworks in the grid?A: You’ll need to update the order in the Inventory List that the OVR is linked to. The OVR reflects that arrangement.

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