By Moe Belghith ’25
In my role at the Visual Resources Center (VRC), I’ve had the privilege of journeying beyond the confines of time and geography. I’m not just a spectator to the diverse array of historical monuments across the globe; I’m also a time traveler, peering through the masterful lens of Professor Denis Baly’s camera to witness these monuments as they stood decades ago. The extensive collection of slides that his camera has produced is a treasure trove teeming with vivid imagery and invaluable information. Curating and managing this collection has been a consuming task that has kept me busy since the summer. Yet, far from a burden, this experience has proven to be deeply gratifying and intellectually invigorating.
In this role, I had the privilege of amalgamating my passion for technology, art, and history, crafting a harmonious blend that allowed me to undertake the digitization of Baly’s slides, thereby safeguarding them from further deterioration. It was a revelation to discover that with the passage of time, the color layers in some slides may fade and appear pink or even red. My task encompassed the meticulous restoration of the slide’s original colors, imbuing them with a vibrant and resplendent vitality through my limited knowledge of Photoshop.
Navigating this uncharted territory proved to be a formidable learning curve, as I had never ventured into such a realm remotely. Even in my formative years, coloring books were a rarity, and yet here I was, entrusted with the responsibility of restoring hues to monuments from around the world, in regions I had never personally experienced, all while adapting to artistic styles strange to me. Nonetheless, I persevered and devised ingenious strategies that enabled me to envision the approximate color palettes that would best suit each slide. I meticulously studied other colored slides from the same collection and geographical locations, seeking to replicate and restore their vivid and authentic colors.
Moe Belghith ’25 is a Mathematics major who loves history, art, and the NCAs on finals weekend.