Sadly, it seems that the acrylic paint used by Liberman does not wear all that well and the conservators at Tate Power have had to resort to fancy chemistry to restore the picture to its natal condition.
I refrain from commenting on the value of this particular item of new clothing for the emperor, but would it not be a lot cheaper just to get some graphic designer or art student to knock up a new one? I dare say a paint supplier could be persuaded to donate the paint and an artists' sundriesman to donate whatever it is that the paint is put on. All in all, a much cheaper option than fancy chemistry with the original.
Or perhaps we should get Richard Branson to fund a stunt. Restore the original picture to natal condition. Paint the best replica that art can manage and money can buy. Then display both pictures side by side, randomising at the start of each day which one is on the right and which one is one the left, using robots so that no-one except Cortana - or Siri if you must use apples - knows the answer. Get visitors to vote for the one that they like best.
Video-tape the visitors for the duration and give a small prize for the funniest clip.
Write the stunt up in suitably learned prose and publish the results in 'Apollo'.
PS: visitors expressing more interest in the robots than the pictures would be disqualified. From where I associate to the fascinating robots that they used to have on display in the pharmacy at St. Thomas' hospital. Watching them at work used to be a splendid way to while away the wait. All of which reminds me of the vast supplies of Dermol which they used to carry there, leading one to suppose that the skin of the residents of Westminster was in poor shape. Perhaps all the toxic fumes from the river? Asbestos in the seats in the Houses of Parliament?
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