The best TV art apps – and when you don't need one
Updated September 17, 2026
“TV art app” covers two different things: the app that manages art on a TV that already has an art mode (Samsung’s SmartThings for the Frame), and apps that turn an ordinary TV into an art display through a screensaver or slideshow. Here are the ones worth using, by platform, and the honest case for skipping apps entirely.
Samsung Frame TV: SmartThings
The Frame’s only app is SmartThings (iOS and Android). It uploads your images to My Collection, sets mattes and filters, favourites Art Store pieces, sets slideshows and changes the displayed art from your phone. It is free; the Art Store inside it is the paid part ($4.99/month – see the Art Store cost guide). Third-party “Frame TV art” apps on the app stores are mostly image libraries that still hand off to SmartThings for the upload.
How-to: upload art with SmartThings.
Fire TV: Amazon Photos
Upload art to an Amazon Photos album (free 5 GB, unlimited photos with Prime) and set it as the screensaver (Settings → Display & Sounds → Screensaver). Rotation, dissolve transitions and slow speed are built in. The best free option for turning any HDMI TV into an art display.
Apple TV: Photos screensaver
Add the art to a shared album in Photos; on the Apple TV choose Settings → Screen Saver → Photos → that album. Clean transitions, no ads, 4K. Apple TV also has excellent built-in aerial screensavers, but they are video, not art.
Google TV / Chromecast / Sony: Google Photos ambient mode
Google Photos album → Settings → System → Ambient mode → Google Photos. Works on Sony Bravia, TCL and Hisense Google TVs and Chromecast with Google TV.
Roku: photo channels
Roku’s own screensavers cannot use your images. Photo View and similar free channels show a slideshow from a connected account or USB; the Roku mobile app can play photos from your phone to the TV (Play on Roku). Roku Media Player handles USB.
YouTube art channels
Search frame TV art, art screensaver 4K, museum paintings screensaver. Many channels publish hours-long videos of paintings and seasonal art (there is a whole genre of framed Christmas art for YouTube TV). Pros: free, huge choice, works on any TV with YouTube. Cons: ads (without Premium), compression artefacts on flat colour, the interface appears if anyone touches the remote, and the TV runs at full TV brightness rather than a dimmed art mode. Good for a party; not a substitute for Art Mode day to day.
No app at all: USB
Every TV has a media player. A USB stick with 16:9 JPEGs and the TV’s own slideshow function needs no account, no upload and no internet. It is the most reliable method on older TVs and on brands with weak apps; the any-TV guide walks through it.
What the apps have in common
Whatever app you use, the art needs to be 16:9, ideally 3840 × 2160, JPEG – and painterly, matte images look like art while glossy photos look like a screensaver. Our collections were made for exactly this, and the free set is an easy way to test your chosen app.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Frame TV app called?
Samsung SmartThings. There is no standalone Frame TV app – Art Mode, the Art Store and My Collection uploads all live under your TV in SmartThings.
Is there a free app to put art on my TV?
The apps are free; the art may not be. SmartThings (Samsung), Amazon Photos (Fire TV), Photos (Apple TV) and Google Photos (Google TV) are all free and display your own images. Our free Frame TV art works in all of them.
Can I use YouTube for TV art?
Yes – search 'frame TV art' or 'art screensaver 4K' on YouTube for long videos of paintings. The downsides: ads unless you have Premium, compression softness, a play bar when you touch the remote, and the TV runs at full brightness. Fine for parties, weak as a daily art mode.
Which app rotates art automatically?
All of the photo-album screensavers rotate through an album. On the Frame, SmartThings' Slideshow setting rotates My Collection or Favourites on a timer.
