AI shows true colors of iconic artwork

Jovi Chi, senior marketing director at AMD, says as a tech company, it is their responsibility to preserve and pass down cultural heritage.

In November 2023, the Yongle Palace and AMD joint digital studio was established.

For Fan Aizhu, a mural restorer and inheritor at the palace, the studio helps break the barriers humans cannot cross.

"There are 289 celestial figures in the mural, along with individually unique auspicious animals, religious instruments, costumes and accessories. The palette is extraordinarily diverse and nuanced, making it challenging to capture every detail," she says.

Even with AI, Xu Jinghui, an algorithm expert from Shengshu Technology who provides technological support to the studio, says it is challenging to restore the vivid colors.

Learning from mural experts like Fan, Xu's team has to first scan the painting and then deconstruct it using several steps, such as separating the outline, drawing and coloring. The accurately labeled text and image data is then fed into the AI engine. With the amount of data being fed to AI, the machine not only processes the data related to the mural but also analyzes the discoloration, color fades, damage, cracks and stains that the mural has endured over the last eight centuries.