“Values of ornament and protection, notions of fullness and projection are at play in the term.” [Duro, 1996] It …show more content…
The arrival of screens has led, however, to subtle changes in these functions. The protection a frame gives, for example, has evolved to better suit the screen — on the screen, no longer is the content a physical artefact which can be damaged: it exists only as light. Instead, the frame is the financially valuable part of a screen — without it, the content rendered within it cannot be seen at all. If the frame of a screen protects anything, it is other parts of itself — the plastic border of a monitor protects the glass screen; the shell of a phone protects the logic board …show more content…
Whilst this is in part a result of technology dictating form, it is also a result of newer media adapting the formats of older ones so as not to jolt the viewer too rapidly out of their comfort zone — a form of skeuomorphism, perhaps. The photograph, seen at first as an advancement of painting, adopted the painting frame, such that viewers would acknowledge the connection. The film, as an advancement of photography, adopted too that rectangle. The frame, when new technologies are concerned, acts as a safe space: though the viewer may not be sure what it is going on within the frame, they at least knows that it is only the frame that they need focus upon. By controlling the eye, the frame prevents new experiences from overwhelming the viewer. This is partly responsible for the computer’s adoption of the frame: a new device, with dynamic content dictated by user input, demanded a screen which would not overwhelm the user — one which would feel familiar and manageable. As such, the format of the television screen was