German troops face wintry conditions north of Oslo during the invasion of Norway in April 1940
“Colourising historical photos is not an exact science. It is a delicate and technical process that requires, on the one hand, diligent historical research and, on the other, the use of what can be called – without apology – artistic licence. Colourisation does not – cannot – ‘restore’ anything to a black-and-white photograph, for such an image has no hidden colours to hunt for. Instead, it adds them, based on known facts and responsible guesswork. It is an interpretive tool, whose limitations must never be brushed over or forgotten...
“Colourisation at its best is an emotional enhancing agent: it magnifies empathy and horror, pity and disgust. It challenges us to respond to history not simply as accountants and analysts, but as human beings, capable of the same fear, confusion, passion, ambition, anger and love as those whose images we see. It asks us to ask more. It nudges us to go off and hunt for the truth behind these extraordinary scenes. That is its purpose. That is its power.”