Some photos of martyrs restored by the "Heart of Vietnamese Soldiers" organization. (Photo: Ngoc Anh/VOV5)

The program is carried out by the "Heart of Vietnamese Soldiers" organization, in collaboration with Vietnam Urban and Environment magazine, the Vietnamese Women's Museum, and the "Forever 20" club.

During wartime, many of the fallen soldiers, artists, and intellectuals did not have visual representations for commemoration. If there were any, they often were black and white photos of poor quality and are now faded by the passage of time.

Young artists of the "Heart of Soldiers" organization have used AI technology to restore historical photographic portraits with vivid color to give people a fresh look at the martyrs and prominent figures who dedicated themselves to their country.

“The journey began three years ago with martyr Pham Van Bai’s daughter, who yearned to see her father's picture and searched for him for more than half a century. We managed to transform a tiny photo into a large colored portrait. This prompted the initiation of a project to restore pictures of writers, artists, and intellectuals who laid down their lives during the resistance war,” said  writer Colonel Dang Vuong Hung, the program’s initiator.

The "Heart of Soldiers" organization and FPT University has collaborated on a philanthropic initiative to restore 10,000 photos as a gesture of gratitude to those who have served the nation, said Hung. 

On this occasion, an autobiography entitled "Phuong" by Pham Kieu Phuong, the daughter of martyr Pham Van Bai, was released. Mr. Bai heroically sacrificed his life on March 31, 1951, when he was commanding a unit which attacked Mao Khe Mo station in Dong Trieu, Quang Ninh province, during the Hoang Hoa Tham campaign.