Malleable Light: How to make lead look like gold and make computer on a single atom

Alchemists are remembered for their ardent pursuit of transmutation of lead into gold. As 20th century physics showed, the feat is, in fact, possible if nuclear reactions are used. So instead of transmuting lead into gold, can we make lead look like gold? In other words, can the alchemist’s dream be achieved by treating it as an optics problem? The answer is yes and moreover it opens new opportunity in science of light