Samsung Art Store to feature 30 British Museum works on art TVs
Version 2: New coverage from Yonhap, Seoul Economic Daily and Dong-A Ilbo adds an official-source account and reports that the British Museum exhibition opened on Sept. 30 local time with Samsung family members attending, while earlier reports said it opened Oct. 1.
In short
Samsung Electronics said it will present 30 representative works from the British Museum on Samsung Art Store, its art subscription service for Samsung TVs. The collection focuses on 19th-century British landscape painting, including pieces by John Constable and J.M.W. Turner. Samsung is also an official corporate partner of the British Museum exhibition “Korea: 2,000 years of Creativity,” which reports say opened Oct. 1, though one outlet said Sept. 30 local time.
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Samsung Electronics said it will present 30 representative works from the British Museum on Samsung Art Store, its subscription art service for Samsung TVs, according to reports by Asia Economy, Newsis, Maeil Business, Yonhap, Seoul Economic Daily and Dong-A Ilbo on Oct. 7 and Oct. 8. Newsis's accessible article text dealt with an unrelated financial-sector hacking story, with the announcement appearing only in its headline. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
The collection is built around 19th-century British landscape painting. Reports cite John Constable's “Willy Lott's Cottage” and “Fisherton Mill” and J.M.W. Turner's “A Storm (Shipwreck)” and “The Colosseum, Rome” among the works. Maeil Business said the Turner pieces range from stormy seas to city views of Venice, Rome and Zurich. [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
Samsung Art Store is described as a subscription art service for Samsung TVs that offers more than 5,000 works from museums and artists in 4K. Maeil Business reported that Samsung receives about 5,000 works from roughly 80 partners, including the Louvre, Orsay, Metropolitan and Tate, and that in December last year it opened a free “Lee Kun-hee Collection” of 20 Korean works with the National Museum of Korea. [ 1 , 3 , 5 ]
The collaboration follows Samsung's partnership with the museum. Asia Economy, Maeil Business and Yonhap reported that Samsung is an official corporate partner of the British Museum's special exhibition “Korea: 2,000 years of Creativity,” which opened on Oct. 1 and runs to Jan. 31. Seoul Economic Daily reported the exhibition opened Sept. 30 local time at the British Museum in London and that the opening was attended by Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong, Leeum Museum of Art honorary director Hong Ra-hee, Hotel Shilla President Lee Boo-jin and Samsung C&T President Lee Seo-hyun. Seoul Economic Daily described the exhibition as a special “Lee Kun-hee Collection” show presenting the late Samsung chairman's cultural artifacts. [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]
Samsung said the works can be viewed on its art TV line-up, including the OLED model (SH95) launched this year, The Frame, The Frame Pro, Micro RGB and Neo QLED. The company said its screens use a special surface coating that spreads light in different directions so artworks remain clear in bright sunlight or with indoor lighting. [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]
Lee Gwi-ho, a vice president in Samsung's visual display business, said the company is “working to help more Samsung TV users easily access world-class artworks through technology,” according to Asia Economy, Maeil Business and Seoul Economic Daily. Lisa San Martin, the British Museum's director of business, said she was pleased the collaboration lets viewers around the world enjoy the museum's collection at home and hoped it would be a chance to revisit familiar masterpieces and discover new ones, according to Asia Economy, Maeil Business and Yonhap. None of the reports stated when the British Museum collection becomes available or at what price. [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]
Why it matters
The announcement links Samsung's art-TV content platform to a major global museum, which Samsung and the museum present as a way to bring its collection into homes. For Samsung, the coverage is largely a product and content-marketing story around its premium TV line-up rather than a new device or financial result. Significance outside Korea is modest, though both Samsung and the British Museum have global audiences.
Key facts
- Samsung Electronics said it will release 30 representative works from the British Museum on Samsung Art Store. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Samsung Art Store is a subscription art service for Samsung TVs that offers more than 5,000 works in 4K from museums and artists, according to the reports. [ 1 , 3 , 5 ]
- The collection is built around 19th-century British landscape painting, including John Constable's “Willy Lott's Cottage” and “Fisherton Mill” and J.M.W. Turner's “A Storm (Shipwreck)” and “The Colosseum, Rome.” [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Samsung is an official corporate partner of the British Museum special exhibition “Korea: 2,000 years of Creativity.” [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]
- The exhibition runs from Oct. 1 to Jan. 31, according to Asia Economy, Maeil Business and Yonhap; Seoul Economic Daily reported it opened Sept. 30 local time. [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]
- The works can be viewed on Samsung art TV models including this year's OLED (SH95), The Frame, The Frame Pro, Micro RGB and Neo QLED, according to Samsung. [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]
- Lee Gwi-ho, a vice president in Samsung's visual display business, said the company is working to help more Samsung TV users easily access world-class artworks through technology. [ 1 , 3 , 5 ]
- Lisa San Martin, the British Museum's director of business, said she hopes the collaboration lets viewers revisit familiar masterpieces and discover new ones. [ 1 , 3 , 4 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Samsung Electronics said it will show 30 representative works from the British Museum through Samsung Art Store, its art subscription service for Samsung TVs. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Samsung Art Store offers more than 5,000 works from museums and artists in 4K, according to the reports. [ 1 , 3 , 5 ]
- The collection focuses on 19th-century British landscape painting, including works by John Constable and J.M.W. Turner. [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Samsung is an official corporate partner of the British Museum's special exhibition “Korea: 2,000 years of Creativity.” [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]
- The exhibition runs from Oct. 1 to Jan. 31, according to Asia Economy, Maeil Business and Yonhap; Seoul Economic Daily reported it opened Sept. 30 local time. [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]
- The works can be viewed on Samsung art TV models including this year's OLED (SH95), The Frame, The Frame Pro, Micro RGB and Neo QLED. [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]
- Samsung said its TVs use an anti-reflection coating that spreads light so artworks stay clear in bright sunlight or with indoor lighting. [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]
- Lee Gwi-ho, a vice president in Samsung's visual display business, said the company is working to help more Samsung TV users easily access world-class artworks through technology, and Lisa San Martin, the British Museum's director of business, said she hopes the collaboration lets viewers revisit familiar masterpieces and discover new ones. [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]
Still unclear
- Which 30 works make up the British Museum collection. The reports name only examples — Constable's “Willy Lott's Cottage” and “Fisherton Mill” and Turner's “A Storm (Shipwreck)” and “The Colosseum, Rome” — and give no full list.
- When the collection becomes available on Samsung Art Store and at what price. No document states a release date or subscription price for the British Museum collection.
- Whether the collection is available to Samsung TV users in all countries. The reports describe the service as global in scope but do not state regions or availability limits.
- The date the British Museum exhibition opened. Asia Economy, Maeil Business and Yonhap say Oct. 1, while Seoul Economic Daily says Sept. 30 local time.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- Asia Economy publishes its report on the British Museum collection coming to Samsung Art Store. [ 1 ]
- Newsis publishes its report on the same collection. [ 2 ]
- Maeil Business publishes its report, adding Samsung's partner list and previous museum tie-ups. [ 3 ]
- Yonhap publishes its report on the collection and exhibition partnership. [ 4 ]
- Seoul Economic Daily publishes its report, adding that the exhibition opened Sept. 30 local time and listing attendees. [ 5 ]
- Dong-A Ilbo publishes its summary of the collection coming to Samsung Art Store. [ 6 ]