Marina Amaral is a digital colorist who specializes in manually adding color to black and white photographs and “breathing life into the past”. A self-taught artist, her process involves careful historical research to determine the colors of the objects pictured. Crowned ‘the master of photo colorization’ by WIRED Magazine, her work has been featured by a number of notable media outlets including the BBC, New York Times, London Evening Standard, Washington Post, and National Geographic Magazine.
Marina’s collaborations span a broad spectrum, from media powerhouses and publishers to museums and cultural institutions – among these, the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Alabama and English Heritage. As the founder of Faces of Auschwitz, she collaborated with the Auschwitz Memorial and Museum to restore photos of the camp’s victims and rescue their life stories. This digital endeavor not only underlines a commitment to historical preservation but also aims to present it through a new, more intimate perspective to new generations. A documentary is also in the works.
Marina’s collaboration with RT on the #ROMANOVS100 and #1917LIVE projects led to multiple international accolades and nominations, including being finalists at the Cannes Lions Festival in 2018 and 2019. In 2021, she brought her colorization skills to the documentary ‘BILLIE’ by director James Erskine, reviving iconic moments and performances of Billie Holiday in vibrant color for the first time.
In 2022, Marina worked alongside UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, on ‘The Colour of Flight’ a project that employed the art of colorization to shed light on the significant history of refugees.
As an author, Marina has partnered with acclaimed British historian Dan Jones to publish ‘The Colour of Time’, a top 5 Sunday Times bestseller in 2018. Their follow-up, ‘The World Aflame’, published in 2020, continued their successful partnership. The duo’s latest collaboration, ‘A Woman’s World’, hit the shelves in 2023. Their books have been translated to more than 12 languages so far.
Marina’s dedication and skill led to her being included in the Forbes 30 Under 30 list in 2021.