Behind tears of joy
At a candle-lighting tribute and the art program “Continuing the Legend - The Aspiration of the Nation,” directed by the General Department of Political Affairs and jointly organized by the Military Youth Advisory Board in mid-July at the Vi Xuyen National War Cemetery in Tuyen Quang province, the presentation of 100 restored portraits by Skyline brought many people to tears. As relatives trembled while receiving and holding the portraits of their loved ones, Trung and his teammates were all moved.
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Phung Quang Trung (first from left) presents restored portraits of Hero of the People’s Armed Forces Huynh Van Danh to Le Thi Dua, Danh’s wife, on August 4, 2026. |
Born in 1996 in Soc Son, Ha Noi, Trung has built his career around restoring old and damaged photographs. More than five years ago, after restoring a martyr’s portrait for a client and seeing a family member burst into tears of joy, he realized how meaningful the work could be.
He later brought together friends who shared an interest in technology and history to establish Skyline. From only a few members at first, the group has grown to more than 15 people living in different provinces and cities.
Each evening, members meet online to assign tasks, from receiving information and searching historical documents to researching military uniforms and ranks from different periods, processing images, printing portraits, and personally delivering them to martyrs’ families.
Hoping one day there will be no more portraits to restore
As more martyrs’ families knew Skyline’s work, the number of requests increased quickly. Many of the original photographs were so badly damaged that only faint facial features remained. In some cases, the team had to rely almost entirely on the memories and descriptions of wives, mothers, or former comrades now in their 80s and 90s. Every detail must therefore be carefully verified and cross-checked several times.
Although artificial intelligence (AI) can support the restoration process, Trung constantly reminds team members that the basic image structure must first be reconstructed manually and then carefully compared with historical documents, military uniforms, insignia, and hairstyles from the relevant period.
For Trung, the greatest reward is not recognition of his technical skills, but the moment a martyr’s family looks at the restored portrait and recognizes their loved one.
One particularly memorable moment came when the team presented restored portraits of martyrs Hoang Van Xoan and Hoang Trung Tinh, the two sons of 94-year-old Heroic Vietnamese Mother Nguyen Thi Chau in Lam Thanh commune, Nghe An province. Knowing that she was frail and had a heart problem, the team carefully planned the handover to avoid causing her undue emotional shock. The successful presentation made the members even more aware of the profound meaning behind every portrait they deliver.
To date, Skyline has restored more than 12,000 portraits. In response to the “500-day-and-night campaign to step up the search, collection, and identification of martyrs’ remains,” the team completed more than 1,100 portraits specifically for activities marking July 27. It also launched the “Welcoming Fallen Soldiers back to the Homeland” program, giving priority to portraits of martyrs whose remains have recently been found or are about to be reburied.
Throughout July, the team traveled to many localities across the country to present restored portraits. One notable trip was an overnight journey to Tay Ninh province to deliver portraits of martyr Huynh Van Quen and Hero of the People’s Armed Forces Huynh Van Danh.
Trung’s work has received strong support from his family, with his wife directly helping with photo editing. He said he was encouraged to see more young people across the country taking part in similar activities.
His greatest hope, however, is that one day Skyline will no longer have any portraits left to restore - because all martyrs will have been identified and “returned” to their homeland, and no family will be left waiting and searching.
Translated by Minh Anh