The city has agreed to pay an American $100,000 to settle a dispute over his restoration of an abstract painting, a repair job one critic said appeared to have been done with a paint roller.
A vandal slashed the painting, "Who's Afraid of Red, Yellow and Blue III," by abstract artist Barnett Newman, while it was hanging in Amsterdam's Stedelijk Museum in 1986.New York-based restorer Daniel Goldreyer was hired to repair the 18-by-8-feet painting. But as soon as the painting was returned to the museum in 1991, critics attacked the $800,000 restoration and the city ordered an investigation.
One critic suggested Goldreyer had used a paint roller.
Goldreyer said he used millions of tiny paint dots to recreate Newman's painting style. He demanded $125 million from the city and Stedelijk employees for damaging his reputation.
The municipality in turn filed a $7 million damages suit against Gold-reyer.
But on Saturday, city spokeswoman Lysbeth den Dulk said: "All legal proceedings came to an end with the out-of-court settlement and both sides have agreed to no longer comment on the restoration."