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Artist transforms 200-year-old images of Native Americans into incredibly lifelike videos

It's like time-traveling to a never seen part of history.

historical photos, artificial intelligence, animation, colorizing, emotional history, artists

1879 photo of Pretty Nose infused with color and then animated with AI.

Taken from YouTube video with image of kelvin temperature by Tiero from Canva.
Mark Wales
By Mark WalesMay 27, 2025
Mark Wales
See Full Bio

As technology advances at an amazing (and a little bit frightening) rate, new means of expression through art continue to come to the surface. Historical pictures have always served as a window of information to our past, yet taking those same images and giving them motion not only conveys a more stimulating experience, it somehow captures the emotion of the time.

Denis, an artist based in Germany (according to his YouTube page), shares his work on his channel Moving History, where he brings historical photos as close to life as he can. Though he joined YouTube in 2023, he only started posting his videos in April 2025. In them, he takes black and white photos from the 19th century and weaves in color and motion using AI. In each video, he shares some historical information to give a broader perspective. The animation is incredible and emotional.

Watch:

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

In a video titled “Native Americans Brought to Life,” Denis offers up quick and interesting tidbits of information about each image he brings to life. Some images are of specific historical figures and others are more general themes about customs, attire, and cultural behavior. He ends the video with a Native American saying, “We are all related.” It’s fitting in that learning our history and gaining awareness of previous generations strengthens our own community. It fosters connection, empathy, and appreciation for our cultural diversity.

I interviewed Denis via email to learn more about him and what inspired history-centered artistic vision. I learned that he began his artistic journey with a black and white photo of his mother as a young woman. He said, "It started as a personal experiment, just to see what was possible. But the emotional impact of that first result surprised me—it felt like she came alive for a moment." And then, "I realized how powerful this could be as a way to connect with history on a more human level."

violinist, music, beautification, graphics, algorithms, computer programs, AI generated imageZitkala-Ša with her violin in 1898 colorized and animated.Taken from YouTube video with image of kelvin temperature by Tiero from Canva.

This is no simple process. It starts with finding high-quality historical photos. He then restores the image in a process called facial restoration. After that, he uses colorization which aims to bring a heightened realism to the photo. Lastly, this new image goes into animation which he claims, "... is deceptively difficult. It's not just about using the right tool, but about crafting the right expression, movement, and timing."

Indian chief, tribe, animated, reservations, American history, educational1908 photo of Bull - Chief of the Apsaroke tribe colorized and animated.Taken from YouTube video with image of kelvin temperature by Tiero from Canva.

Denis describes his channel's mission in the about section, writing, “Welcome to Moving History! On this channel, I bring historical moments to life by transforming old black-and-white photos into vibrant color images. Each video is a journey into the past, where you’ll see famous figures, ordinary people, and significant events in a whole new light. My projects not only restore historical accuracy but also breathe new life into these moments.”

The results clearly demonstrate the hard work put into each image and eventual video.

tribalism, community, educational, modernization, reanimation, Mosa, 1903Mosa original photo from 1903 with modern colorization and reanimation.Taken from YouTube video with image of kelvin temperature by Tiero from Canva.

AI generated images brought to life are compelling. This new and growing technology can bring fresh experiences to old systems of information and education. Some other productive aids that are now available to you and the public at large:

  • You can have a conversation with an AI like ChatGPT by starting with a prompt such as: Role-play as the famous historical figure Abraham Lincoln for the rest of our conversation. Other sites like Hello History or PeopleAI also focus on AI interactions behaving like different historical figures.
  • Mission US is a site dedicated to story-driven games offering up missions to explore historical themes. The website states, “Mission US is part of an expanding body of “serious games” that immerse users in historical and contemporary problems in ways that encourage perspective-taking, discussion, and weighing of multiple kinds of evidence.”
  • Google Arts offers apps that can rate your drawings using AI and offer suggestions for improvement.

YouTube channels like Modern History breathe new creative ways into connecting the human experience through imaginative and powerful art. Denis sums it all up tastefully, saying, "I’m passionate about using technology and storytelling to build emotional bridges between the present and the past."

ai generated imageschatgptcolor and motionemotional impactgoogle artsgrowing technologyhistorical picturesmodern colorizationnative americansreanimationtechnology advancesai art

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