Scientists use AI, X-rays, and 3D printing to reveal a hidden Picasso
The painting had been obscured for 118 years
Discovering the painting
Scholars had spent years searching for the painting before it was finally found in 2010.
An unfinished version of the portrait appears in the background of Picasso’sLa Vie, but the original wasn’t discovered until X-rays unearthed it behindThe Blind Man’s Meal.
A decade later, two researchers from University College London have reproduced the painting.
The restoration process
George Cann, a UK Space Agency PhD candidate, and Anthony Bourached, who researches Machine Learning and Behavioural Neuroscience at UCL, used a five-step technique to recreate lost artworks, which they conducted through a company they cofounded called Oxia Palus.
The duo first used X-ray and infrared imagery to reveal the underpainting within the surface piece. This imagery was then processed to separate the exterior and interior pieces.
Next, anartificial neural networkwas trained on works by Picasso. This enabled the system to reproduce the piece in the Spanish artist’s style.
The researchers then generated a heatmap of the artwork to give the piece texture. Finally, the piece was 3D-printed onto canvas in the exact size of the original painting.
The AI imitator
The researchers believe Picasso would have welcomed the restoration.Bourached suspects that the artist would have never wanted to lose the original:
Not everyone shares Bourached’s enthusiasm. Criticsdoubt that AI can accurately replicatea Picasso and fear that it adds elements the artist would not have used.
In some respects, the technique has deepened the mystery of the original painting — and the woman that it depicts.
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Story byThomas Macaulay
Thomas is a senior reporter at TNW. He covers European tech, with a focus on AI, cybersecurity, and government policy.Thomas is a senior reporter at TNW. He covers European tech, with a focus on AI, cybersecurity, and government policy.
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