[Holidays 2022] Favorite Frame TV Holiday Art
My living room mantle with a nativity scene on my Frame TV
No one ever shared how fun it is to own a Samsung Frame TV. We purchased ours for the formal living room in our home this year with the hopes that it wouldn’t look like a TV eyesore in a room where we would receive guests.
I’m going to be honest, without a fun frame it looks like a TV in our space. Completely convinced once I find a gold frame I’m willing to commit to this will help but until then I’ll just be digging through the internet finding cool works of art, that is affordable or preferably free.
Many of the decorating groups I am a part of are asking what everyone is uploading to their Frame TV, so I figured sharing on a blog post might be helpful to some of y’all. Fair warning but this holiday season I only focused on Etsy for art. I know that there are many free sites where you can find art to display, I was just lazy this year.
I’ve split everything into three themes: Jolly Old Saint Nick, Jesus Christ is Born, and Christmas & Winter scenes - all of my favorite holiday categories. However, there are so many choices online: nutcrackers, Christmas trees, farmhouse, primitive Christmas, vintage postcards, Europe Christmas scenes, holiday foliage (think holly, evergreens, etc.), winter sports (ice skating scenes), Holiday homes, there is something for everyone on Etsy.
Jolly Old Saint Nick
I don’t have a little one at home but if I still did it would be Santa Claus all month long. There is something whimsical and magical when I think of Santa, let alone all the memories I have from having a believer in the home for so many years, so I still uploaded a piece of Old Saint Nick art onto my TV for rotation. Never miss the opportunity to upload things that bring you joy. Most of what I picked were due to the subject or colors.
For example, I loved the “Nordic” inspired art [below] where Santa is being pulled by his reindeer in a toboggin type sleigh. I loved this one for its more muted colors and focus on the reindeer we all know by name. I also think its wonderful to appreciate different countries renditions of an American Christmas figure. Second was a sweet little piece with Santa and Mrs. Claus. You rarely see Mrs. Claus included so I knew how special this one would be. I especially appreciate the traditional red colors of their clothing which would look stunning displayed on a lower light setting. Third I named “Delivering Presents” which may not even be the arts real name but it looked like how I would imagine Santa going from house to house with presents for good girls and boys, right before the “lift off”. This third choice I did download onto my Frame TV and happens to be J’s favorite.
Jesus Christ is Born
The birth of Jesus has produced some of the most beautiful art, plays, and songs. I was fortunate enough to see the influence of Jesus’s birth in these mediums while we were living in Europe. It lead to a bigger appreciation of what I already loved, the Christmas story of the Virgin Mary and Jesus has always been one of my favorites whether it be told at Mass on Midnight or at church sermons on Christmas Day. What a gift mankind was given!
When it comes to this subject of art I am forever drawn to the renaissance and Italian art periods. The type of paintings you would see on ceilings of massive cathedrals, palaces, and castles. I spent hours at the Louvre just looking at each version of stories in the Bible. The first piece I shared [below] is one that I did download. You can see how beautifully the faces of those who have come to adore the Christ child light up in the first picture of my mantle [on this post]. It was the expressions of the faces; love, awe, and admiration as they behold this gift that drew me to this piece.
The other three pieces are all created at different times in history but share the same story. I am convinced the gold of the halos surrounding the holy family in “No Room at the Inn” would look beautiful at a little higher screen brightness. If you have dark walls of black, dark blue, and dark green in the room where your TV is located the warm colors of yellow, gold, and earth tones would look incredible. The third Frame TV art of the manger is a different nod to the birth of Jesus with a more “modern” look. I loved the star and the simplicity of just the manger. It gave me a sense of peace at a beautiful scene.
Christmas & Winter Scenes
I feel like peaceful holiday and winter scenes look beautiful in a light, bright room. Images of fathers and sons bringing in the newly found Christmas tree, people gathering hay on their farms in the snow, beautifully peaceful cottage homes, and all white, light blue, green landscapes are perfect decorating complements to the Grandmillenial, Coastal Grandmillenial (think Martha’s Vineyard, England Cottage in the movie, The Holiday), Traditional, and even - in my opinion - Modern Farmhouse aesthetic. I always think of lots of ginger jars with Williamsburg blue bows, fireplaces with cedar garlands with bells and dark green velvet ribbons, dried fruits like grapefruit and oranges hanging from trees full of homemade paper snowflakes and ribbons. I have always been obsessed with a Colonial Williamsburg, old historic southern homes, Christmas which decorated with the things they had on their land and these pretty scenes could definitely compliment the décor without taking anything away.
No Frame TV, No Problem
I do own SMART TV’s in other parts of our home that are not Samsung Frame TV’s. However, I love the idea of “art” being displayed instead of a black TV screen. I have one fun hack using the TV YouTube app. You’ll open your YouTube app (I open mine up under “guest”). Then I’ll look for a channel called “Vintage Art TV”. There you will find a 1 hour, 4K quality collection of paintings. The displayed art will only stay up for about 10 minutes before a new image will appear in its place. For an hour that is 6 images for 10 minutes each. The reason is to keep your TV from creating a “burned” image on its screen. Vintage Art TV has something for every season and subject. In my bedroom after the holidays, but during the winter months I love their “Moody Floral” slideshow. If you love the costal grandmother aesthetic the “Ocean and Sand” is beautiful. The best part, this way of turning your SMART TV into art with YouTube is free!
Here is a list of art tv YouTube channels:
Vintage Art TV
TV Art
Curated TV Art
Art For Your TV
Returning Grace Designs
The Museum Ambience
If you prefer movement in your art (think rain falling, fire crackling) and/or music/sound, here are a list of movement art tv YouTube Channels:
Coffee Shop Music
My Ambience
Jazz Cafe Ambience
Cozy Rain
Soothing Jazz
Relaxed Soul
If you don’t have a SMART TV it’s easy to convert your tv into one. We were able to update one of our 70” TV’s using the Amazon Firestick. The Firestick 4K is currently on sale for $26.99 with free one day delivery for Prime members.