This Chic Picture Frame Is Actually an Amazingly Advanced TV
Gallery wall aficionados, take note: Samsung has just released a television made for you. The Frame, devised by product designer extraordinaire Yves Béhar, is the aesthete's answer to the television's gaping black hole. Instead of covering valuable wall space with a black screen, Béhar's design functions as a digital photo frame when not in use, transforming your television into a veritable work of art.
"The Frame redefines the notion of the TV at home, moving away from the shiny technological black box on the wall," explains Béhar. "It becomes part of our home and lifestyle—not just another consumer tech product."
When in Art Mode, The Frame rotates through a series of artworks, which can be customized by the owner.
When in art mode, The Frame displays a rotating selection of over 100 works curated by Elise Van Middelem (onetime art strategist for RH, cofounder of San Francisco's School of Doodle, and a champion of art access), including those by Todd Eberle, Luisa Lambri, and Barry McGee. A brightness sensor on the television adjusts the image based on the room's light level, ensuring the digitized version closely resembles the original work. And, like most fine art (and as its name suggests), the TV has quite a fine frame. No solid plastic and unseemly buttons here: This television is encased in black, white, or wood veneer.
"The Frame uses modern technology to bring art into our homes; for many, this will be their first true art collection," Béhar says. "Art education is rapidly diminishing and people aren't being as exposed to art as they used to be. I wanted The Frame to be accessible and easy to use. I also wanted it to be customizable, so people can choose materials and finishes to fit their home style. By bringing more art into our lives, I believe that everyone can build more personal connections with it."
The Frame with a photo display.
The Frame is eco-conscious, too: Instead of displaying art to an empty room, the TV uses a series of sensors to detect movement in front of it and will power off (and out of art mode) if it determines no one is in the room.
Samsung is no newcomer to the challenge of beautifying the television. In 2014 they worked with Béhar to develop a striking curved TV, and last year they commissioned Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec to design the Serif . Both designs were essentially part television, part minimalist sculpture, and were touted as design solutions to the TV as an eyesore. The Frame takes that one step further, though, turning the oft-lamented "distraction" of technology on its head. "We see and experience the distractions of technology every day," explains Béhar. "The Frame wants to be non-distractive, providing pleasure and ideas with art, but without being interruptive." With a TV that looks this good switched off, we might never turn ours on again.