— Basim Magdy, renowned artist

Basim Magdy is a visionary Egyptian artist whose work merges dreamlike imagery with thought-provoking, philosophical narratives. Through layered photography and vibrant, otherworldly visuals, he invites viewers into worlds shaped by memory, myth and speculative futures. Now featured on Samsung Art Store as part of the Art Basel in Basel collection, his distinctive aesthetic brings moments of reflection into daily life.

Samsung Newsroom sat down with Magdy to explore his creative process and the transformative power of art in everyday environments.

▲ Artist Basim Magdy poses at Samsung ArtCube at Art Basel in Basel.

Partnerships, Presence and Possibilities

Q. How has Art Basel in Basel played a role in your career?

For over a decade, I’ve attended Art Basel in Basel every year — it continues to be one of the most exciting and inspiring art events for me. A recent highlight was having a large-scale photographic work presented in Art Basel Unlimited in 2022.

This year, alongside the presentation of my work at the Samsung ArtCube lounge, I’m exhibiting expanded photography with Gypsum Gallery (Cairo) and paintings with hunt kastner (Prague).

▲ “An Intergalactic Messenger Teleported us to a Cave Settlement Ruled by Shared Compassion and Humility” (2022) by Basim Magdy

Q. What led to your partnership with Samsung Art Store for this year’s Art Basel in Basel?

It happened naturally. I was drawn to the idea of my work existing in a different context — one where it could reach new audiences including those who may not typically visit galleries or museums but who are still curious about art.

Reframing Time Through Art

Q. How did your visual and conceptual style develop into something both surreal and poetic?

It took years of curiosity, experimentation and a desire to create a visual language that reflects who I am. Both poetry and the strange layers of reality have long shaped my thinking. Over time, my style evolved as I explored different artistic tools and mediums. Creating something surreal and poetic has allowed me to propose new ideas and reinterpret familiar ones in unexpected ways.

“Art expresses what can’t be said in words.”

— Basim Magdy, contemporary artist

Q. Storytelling, memory and imagined futures are recurring themes in your art. What drives your interest in these narratives?

I’ve become increasingly interested in how we perceive time. I think that awareness deepens with age — the realization that each passing moment is gone and what lies ahead will be different yet oddly familiar.

Though time is a construct, its rhythms — like sunrises and sunsets — form the backdrop of our lives. History shapes how we understand the past and determines how memories are kept alive — an incredibly subjective process, often told through one point of view.

That’s what fascinates me. It raises questions about what gets recorded and what was deemed unworthy of preservation. What about the countless lives that pass without being remembered or documented? Time, memory and history must always be revisited and questioned. Art gives us the freedom to do so without constraint.

Art Without Rules, Technology Without Limits

Q. Your media include chemically altered film and layered photography. How do you preserve their texture and nuance when translating these physical processes into digital formats for display?

The urge to experiment is what drives me to work across different media. It’s rooted in asking questions and pushing limits. Translating analog processes into digital form is one of those explorations — and with it comes the challenge of maintaining texture, depth and complexity.

▲ Artist Basim Magdy is well known for his fusion of dreamlike imagery with thought-provoking, philosophical narratives.

Q. With technology playing a bigger role in creating and experiencing art, how has it shaped your creative process or your approach to audience engagement?

Technology is evolving constantly, and with it, the way we experience the world — not just art. Today, reality often exists simultaneously in physical space and on screens. In the end, I think my lived experiences — whether encountered in real life or on a screen — inform my art just as much as my imagination does.

For me, art expresses what can’t be said in words. Technology is largely shaped by scientific research that operates within defined rules and systems. Art, on the other hand, is free from those constraints — so when artists engage with new technologies, the results are often surprising.

▲ Basim Magdy experiences the new Art Basel in Basel Collection at Samsung ArtCube.

From Exhibition to Everyday

Q. Your work is now featured on Samsung Art Store and displayed in homes around the world. How does being part of someone’s everyday environment shift your perspective on your art?

It’s humbling. We each experience art through our own lens — shaped by who we are and where we’ve been. I hope my work resonates in ways that invite thought, emotion or a quiet moment of connection. For me, that kind of unspoken, personal response is the most fulfilling outcome.

Q. Samsung Art Store turns a screen into a gallery. How do you feel your work resonates differently in a digital home setting compared to a traditional gallery or museum?

Seeing art in a gallery or a museum is still ideal — but it’s also limited. A piece only exists in one place and not everyone can travel to see it, especially if it’s halfway across the world.

Samsung Art Store offers a more intimate way to experience art. Someone can engage with a piece they connect with at their own pace, free from the limitations of gallery hours or institutional settings. The platform also gives access to audiences who may not have a chance to view my work through traditional means.

Digital representations of art continue to evolve — and so do the ways we engage with them. I look forward to a future where we can project fully detailed images into space and where the digital experience of art might one day include touch, texture or even scent.

“[Through Samsung Art Store, one] can engage with a piece at their own pace, free from the limitations of gallery hours or institutional settings.”

— Basim Magdy, contemporary artist

Q. If someone is encountering your work for the first time through Samsung Art Store in their home, what would you like them to notice or feel?

I hope they experience something that stays with them — whether it’s a thought, feeling or subtle moment of curiosity. The way someone connects to art is deeply individual, and I try not to shape or influence that. It’s more meaningful when that sense of intimacy is preserved.

▲ As Art Basel’s official display partner, Samsung offers exclusive access to curated exhibition artworks via Samsung Art Store, also on display onsite at Art Basel in Basel 2025.

With participation from approximately 280 galleries across 42 countries and regions, Art Basel in Basel 2025 offers a comprehensive view of the latest ideas shaping contemporary art today. As the official display partner, Samsung presents a new digital art experience that brings together art and technology through its premium screens including The Frame, MICRO LED and Neo QLED 8K.

Immersive Digital Art Experience: ‘ArtCube’ Draws Visitors Into the World of Art

At Art Basel in Basel 2025, Samsung unveiled ‘ArtCube,’ a lounge dedicated to digital art experiences on Samsung devices. Created under the theme “Borderless, Dive Into the Art,” ArtCube offers a progressively immersive journey as visitors navigate the space.

Passing through a large LED entrance where the Art Basel in Basel Collection from Samsung Art Store is reinterpreted as digital artworks, visitors discover a space showcasing the full lineup of Samsung Art TVs in the ArtCube. Artworks from Samsung Art Store, displayed across The Frame, MICRO LED and Neo QLED 8K screens, envelop the front and side walls to create a deeply immersive experience — one that makes visitors feel as though they have stepped directly into the art itself.

▲ Samsung Art TVs — including The Frame Pro, MICRO LED and Neo QLED 8K — line the interior walls of ArtCube.

▲ A visitor views Basim Magdy’s artwork on display at ArtCube, part of the Samsung Art Store collection at Art Basel in Basel 2025.

An interactive experience zone, powered by Samsung Art Store, is also featured. Visitors can select an artist showcased in the exhibition, take a photo and generate a personalized selfie in the chosen artist’s style, using generative AI — offering a distinctive and engaging experience.

▲ A visitor captures a selfie to generate a dynamic artwork styled after her favorite artist at Samsung ArtCube.

Talk Session With RM of BTS: Expanding the Boundaries of Creativity Through Digital Technology 

A special talk session was also held, attracting significant attention as RM of 21^st century pop icons BTS and a passionate advocate for the arts, joined as a guest panelist to engage with visitors.

▲ Photo of BTS’s RM participating as a panelist

During the session, RM remarked, “Art is already embedded in many aspects of our lives. It makes us more human, gives us space to breathe amid life, and often opens a window to somewhere else.”

Also joining the session was Basim Magdy, a contemporary artist based in Basel, Switzerland, and a featured creator on the Samsung Art Store. He shared insightful perspectives on the role of digital technology and its future potential within the art ecosystem.

▲ Artist Basim Magdy explains how his work can be more richly experienced through Samsung Art TVs.

“I never imagined one of my pieces showing up in someone’s living room in another part of the world,” said Basim Magdy. “It’s thrilling to know that my artwork is hanging in someone’s living room on the other side of the world.”

Bringing Art Into Everyday Life Through Samsung Art Store

Earlier this week, Samsung unveiled a new collection featuring 38 highlighted pieces from Art Basel in Basel 2025, now available on Samsung Art Store. With this launch, Samsung Art Store subscribers around the world can enjoy a diverse selection of Art Basel artworks from the comfort of their homes — without needing to travel to Basel, Switzerland.

As the official display partner of Art Basel for 2025, Samsung will continue its participation in the annual exhibitions held in Basel, Hong Kong, Paris and Miami. Through Samsung Art Store, the company aims to make art more accessible and seamlessly integrated into everyday life.

▲ Basim Magdy, featured in the Samsung Art Store collection at Art Basel in Basel 2025, views his own work on display at ArtCube.

▲ Visitors take in the vibrant, dreamlike works of Basim Magdy on display at ArtCube, part of Samsung’s digital art showcase at Art Basel in Basel 2025.

▲ A visitor captures Kun-yong Lee’s artwork on display at Samsung ArtCube.

▲ A visitor views Marc Dennis’ artwork on display at Samsung ArtCube.

▲ A vivid portrait in the style of Marc Dennis captures a visitor’s attention at ArtCube, part of Samsung’s digital art showcase at Art Basel in Basel 2025.

▲ A vivid portrait in the style of Saya Woolfalk captures visitors’ attention at ArtCube, part of Samsung’s digital art showcase at Art Basel in Basel 2025.

▲ The experience zone highlights Samsung Art Store and lets visitors create immersive, AI-powered photos with animated elements from featured artworks.

▲ One of the most striking pieces at ArtCube, Basim Magdy’s “The Dictator and His Cockroach Count Their Blessings” merges satire and dreamlike visuals in Samsung’s digital art showcase.

▲ Visitors explore the immersive artworks by Marc Dennis at ArtCube, where his vivid, hyperreal art pieces are brought to life with digital projections.

* All artworks in Samsung Art Store are available with a membership subscription. Artwork availability is subject to change without prior notice and may vary by region.
** This article was updated on June 20, 2025 to include more on-site photos.

▲ Hedi Mertens’s Gruppo di quadrati sulla base di un quadrato (1966) shown on Neo QLED by Samsung.

Samsung Electronics, the Official Art TV of Art Basel, today announced the launch of the Art Basel in Basel (ABB) Collection, an exclusive curation of digital art available across Samsung TVs with Samsung Art Store.¹ Representing the most extensive Art Basel collection to date, the ABB Collection introduces 38 curated works from globally renowned artists and galleries — marking a new milestone in Samsung and Art Basel’s mission to bring world-class art to a wider audience.

The ABB Collection stands apart for its emphasis on diversity, with works that span continents, mediums and voices. For the first time, the collection features representation from an Africa-based gallery, deepening the global reach and cultural richness of the Samsung x Art Basel initiative. Some of this collection will be displayed at the Art Basel, from June 19-22, at Messe Basel in Switzerland.²

A Curated Vision of Global Expression

Handpicked from over 100 submissions, the 38 pieces in the ABB Collection were carefully curated with a focus on artist diversity, medium variety and geographic representation. The collection celebrates both emerging talent and established visionaries, aligning with Art Basel’s dedication to championing contemporary art from all corners of the world.

Highlights include:

• Roméo Mivekannin, “Young woman with peonies after Frédéric Bazille” (2023): A compelling reimagining of classical portraiture from a postcolonial perspective.
• Basim Magdy, “An Intergalactic Messenger Teleported us to a Cave Settlement Ruled by Shared Compassion and Humility” (2022): A vibrant exploration of utopian futurism.
• Zandile Tshabalala, “Pink Blossoms” (2024): A powerful portrait celebrating Black femininity and nature.
• Antonia Kuo, “Willo” (diptych) (2024): A striking dual-panel composition that fuses digital manipulation with analog techniques.

The collection also includes works by iconic names such as Jo Baer, Kibong Rhee and Lynn Hershman Leeson, further enriching the visual and thematic depth of this year’s selection.

ArtCube: An Interactive Hands-on Experience at Art Basel

▲ Jo Baer’s Untitled (1961-1962) shown on Neo QLED by Samsung.

To further highlight the intersection of art and technology, Samsung will present an interactive lounge titled ArtCube³ at Art Basel. This immersive showcase will demonstrate how The Frame, MICRO LED and Neo QLED 8K redefine digital art experiences by displaying artwork — including selections from the Art Basel Collection — with breathtaking detail and depth.

ArtCube invites visitors to engage with the Samsung Art Store’s exclusive collections and freely experience the premium picture quality. Visitors can also make customized portraits of moving art pieces only available through ArtCube’s tailored curation. In addition to the ArtCube lounge experience, Samsung will host a series of panel discussions featuring influential voices from the contemporary art scene, sparking conversations around technology’s expanding role in artistic expression and accessibility.

Strengthening a Cultural Partnership

Samsung and Art Basel have partnered to introduce curated digital collections that began with the 2024 Art Basel Miami Beach, 2025 Art Basel Hong Kong, and now includes the 2025 Art Basel in Basel. Artworks from Art Basel Hong Kong, launched in March, have gained global popularity among Art Store users, ranking them in top 10 most-viewed art pieces.⁴ This ongoing collaboration highlights the shared vision of expanding the role of displays as vibrant platforms for storytelling and artistic dialogue.

“With the launch of a new collection in the Samsung Art Store for Art Basel in Basel 2025, we’re thrilled to offer our global audiences new ways to engage with our show,” said Maike Cruse, Director of Art Basel in Basel. Our global partnership with Samsung extends the visitor experience beyond the Messe and into people’s homes — creating new entry points to discover the exceptional artists and galleries that define our flagship fair in Basel.”

Completing a Unique Art Experience on Samsung Art TVs

▲ Lynn Hershman Leeson’s Seduction (1985) shown on Neo QLED 8K by Samsung.

Samsung Art Store offers the best way to transform your TV and elevate your home decor with the perfect piece of art for every season, holiday and mood. You can choose from 3,500+ works of art spanning over 800 artists, including the ABB Collection.

Spanning the Neo QLED 8K, Neo QLED, QLED, The Frame and The Frame Pro, which are powered by Samsung Vision AI for AI-enhanced picture and sound, Samsung Art Store is newly available across the Samsung 2025 TV lineup. These TV models also come with new personalized features that bring users closer to all the shows, movies and sports they love. Across the lineup, Samsung offers more ways than ever to transform TV screens into personalized art galleries.

The Art Basel in Basel Collection is now available exclusively on the Samsung Art Store to all Samsung Art TV users.

For more information, visit www.samsung.com.

About Art Basel
Founded in 1970 by gallerists from Basel, Art Basel today stages the world’s premier art shows for Modern and contemporary art, sited in Basel, Miami Beach, Hong Kong and Paris. Defined by its host city and region, each show is unique, which is reflected in its participating galleries, artworks presented, and the content of parallel programming produced in collaboration with local institutions for each edition. Art Basel’s engagement has expanded beyond art fairs through new digital platforms including the Art Basel App and initiatives such as the Art Basel and UBS Global Art Market Report and the Art Basel Awards. Art Basel’s Global Lead Partner is UBS. For further information, please visit artbasel.com.

¹ Samsung Art TV includes MICRO LED, The Frame, The Frame Pro, Neo QLED 8K, Neo QLED and QLED models starting from Q7F and above.
² Event is open to the public from June 19-22, after VIP opening from June 16-18.
³ Samsung Lounge ‘ArtCube’ is in Halle 1, the main exhibition floor inside Messe Basel.
⁴ The information provided is based on the results collected during April 2025.