There is a link to a discussion of these character/artifact editors here: http://www.ironycentral.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=21;t=000564
Yeah, those doors open after chapter 1 (when you cross over into Ilya.) It's a useful shortcut if you decide to use the Southforge storage room to depot all your artifact building/excessive baton items.